Its A Vampire Thing
by TheWindAlchemist
Summary: The Akatsuki are a group of feared vampires.Hinata,clinging to her last breath,begs one of them to take her with him after slaughtering her entire family. He agrees. DeiHina. .:Epilogue:.
1. Take Me With You

Yay for vampires!

Stephenie Meyer's _Breaking Dawn_ is coming out August 2nd! Though, this story will probably be up on like, years after that lol XD (exaggeration, of course)

So, The Akatsukis you all know and love have been ranked up to vampire. On one of Deidara's rounds to quench his thirst for blood, he finds out that a girl survived his bite. With her last bit of strength she asked him to take her with him to the Akatsuki Lair. It was a pretty large demand for someone in her condition, but for some reason, he couldn't leave her there.

Enjoy your stay.

-:-

"_There are constant reports about a band of vampires raiding the city. We strongly advise you to stay in your homes and lock your doors at night; protect yourselves any way you can until we find a solution to this vampire invasion."_

A dark figure rose up, silhouetted by the bright screen of the TV, letting another body slip out of his blood stained hands. He wiped his face, smearing blood over his cheek as well.

"As if locking your doors will hide your scent." He murmured darkly, watching as the dead girl lay lifeless on the ground. "Nothing can shield your kind from us."

The man turned and began walking out of the room, pausing only to turn off the television that was still announcing useless ways to keep vampires out of your dreams at night. He stopped again when he sensed something moving when it so clearly shouldn't. Turning around to look, he saw the girl he so carelessly threw to the ground a few minutes ago reach out to him.

"Take… me with you…" She croaked, her clear eyes pleading.

More screams were heard throughout the night, and a shadowed figure walked through the empty streets carrying a near-lifeless body back to his lair.

-:-

Deidara grimaced.

This girl… why was she here again?

Ah, yes, she was dying and asked him to take her with him.

But did she honestly have a clue as to where he was going?

Surely she must have mistaken him for some form of help.

But… why did he play along?

As he thought of an answer, the girl started to wake up. She made small noises as she stirred slightly and sat up in bed. She rubbed her eyes as if she just woke up from a nap. He expected her to scream when she saw him – since she so clearly didn't know what she was in for in this place. But when she turned to him, she didn't make a sound except for a soft, throaty question.

"Who… are you…?"

Deidara stared at her for a few seconds. "Deidara. Your savior and most likely your end." He introduced darkly. The girl nodded calmly. Why wasn't she afraid?

"That makes sense… thank you for saving me. I didn't think you'd listen when I asked you to take me with you…" she smiled a little. Deidara was surprised, to say the least. Normal people would be wetting themselves with fear at this point. He was sure he'd get her with the 'most likely your end' line.

"And who, may I ask, are you?" he asked with the same level of cool she had. Possibly more. "I am Hinata Hyuga. The person you saved and most likely the person you'll kill in the next few minutes." She smiled a little. That caught him off guard. "Pretty sharp tongue you got there…" he commented. "Thank you." They shared a silence. They turned away from each other.

A few minutes later he heard a soft thud – the kind you heard when someone fell onto a bed. He turned back to find the girl – Hinata – her head resting on the pillow again, sleeping. He decided to let the girl sleep. He had big plans for her already.

-:-

Hinata woke up a few hours into the day, around 2 pm. When she did, she found herself in a different room, much brighter than the room she was in before, and in a much larger bed. Though the room still held a feel of darkness to it. There was a set of clothing at the foot of the bed, a black and purple Lolita dress with gloves and matching boots. After taking a look at the clean clothes, she took a good look at herself. She was filthy with blood stains and a few rips on her shirt and raggedy jeans.

There was a sign on a door to her left that read 'Washroom' and walked to it. Well, to say the least, it was bigger than her room back home. A hot tub, a shower, a toilet, and two sinks filled the room only halfway, and the rest was a sort of lounging space with a radio of sorts in the corner. All in all, it was an awesome bathroom.

Hinata went back to get the Lolita dress and freshened up in the bathroom, relaxing there for almost an hour. She decided to change and get out of the bathroom to see the rest of the house she was in. Or, judging by the size of this bathroom, mansion.

When she walked back to her room, she saw that her bed was made and two ribbons on the dresser for her hair. This was no doubt a little strange, but she tied the ribbons in her hair to complete her look. She twirled around and suddenly came face-to-face with the man she talked to before she passed out. "So you're awake and well, I see." He said observantly. Hinata nodded slowly, managing a small smile. "Thank you very much." She breathed, a small blush creeping on her cheeks. He was standing really close to her, and that made her blush.

He backed away, and she relaxed a bit more. She took note that she felt warmer than when he was right in front of her. Like he was cooling her down. He moved to sit on the bed. Something about him pulled her to sit beside him. He smiled a little, content with the action perhaps.

"I have a proposal for you." He began, closing his eyes and gathering his thoughts. Hinata nodded. "In return for your life, you become our maid. You'll clean, cook, and take care of any tasks we ask of you. And also, you'll have this room as your own. We here won't enter without your permission, nor will we change anything while you're busy tending to the mansion." Hinata thought about it for a minute or so, thinking that being alive was a little better than being torn apart limb from limb by a vampire. So she nodded in agreement, and took the man's hand when he extended it to her. It was ice cold, if not colder.

Hinata, feeling concerned for the incredibly cold man, grasped both hands over his. He looked confused, but curiosity kept him still. She rubbed his hands and breathed on them, waiting for them to warm up. He soon realized what she was doing and chuckled a little. Gently, he pulled his hand away. "You can do that for a hundred years and they'll still be as cold as this." He said. Hinata looked worried for a moment, but returned to normal when she calmed herself.

"Your name… I forgot your name…" she murmured. "My name is Deidara. Your name is Hinata, correct?" he stood up. Hinata nodded. "Alright. I'll leave you to settle down; you start tomorrow." Before Hinata could give a proper good-bye, he was gone, leaving her to warm herself up from his cold touch.

-:-

She found food on the table beside her bed while she was in the bathroom listening to the radio. After she ate, she couldn't remember anything, except for the fact that she woke up that evening. However, she did not feel tired because of her day-long sleep. In fact, she found that evening and nighttime was when the residents of the mansion were most active.

"What? A girl?"

"Woo-hoo! Dei-Dei finally sco-"

_THWACK!_

"I don't need this crap!" – this was a particular familiar voice to her.

"Aw, no need to be ashamed 'bout it. What's she like?"

"I don't need this… I'm going ahead." There was a stomping noise and a slamming of a door.

There was a silence after that.

"He's having a hissy fit." Someone giggled.

"I'll say. Hehe…"

"I think he said something about the girl's room being…"

Hinata realized that she had opened the door to her room a little to hear the conversation. But already someone noticed her and was walking towards the room. She thought it to be rude to close the door on him, so she backed away a little. But the man stopped at the door. He brushed some of his red hair from his eyes and smiled at her.

"May I come in?" he asked. Hinata blushed and backed away from the door, opening it to let the man in.

He introduced himself as Sasori, and for some odd reason, he didn't sleep much. Not even during the day, when vampires were usually known to rest. He told her that she could talk to him whenever she wanted to, and that his room was right down the hall, fifth door to the left. However… he advised her not to go near him when he was thirsty, because he was near uncontrollable when he was. He didn't want to hurt her yet, unless she gave him a reason to.

Hinata was both confused and happy that she met Sasori. He seemed nice.

The third person she met was a bubbly and happy vampire who called himself 'Tobi'. She liked him very much as well. He mentioned how long it has been since a human last lived here. He said that it was also a girl, and that she was still here, somehow. She'd have to look into that one.

Then, before she knew it, it was already almost morning. The vampires that had left were returning, yawning sleepily after a night well done. In fact, Hinata felt a bit sleepy as well. She felt bad for wasting another day sleeping, but she couldn't help it. The second she got back to her room, she changed into the pair of pajamas that was laid out for her (she was too drowsy to care where it came from) and plopped down on her bed.

-:-

She woke up in late afternoon, around 4. She changed into the clothes once again laid out for her and stepped outside. It was dark, except for the light streaming in from the windows. She had a sticky note attached to her head, reading: 'First day on the job – sweep the floors on the first floor. – Deidara'

"First floor…" she murmured to herself, noticing a maid's outfit lying at the foot of the bed. She blushed – they expected her to wear that? Shrugging, she changed and walked out of her room, finding a broom and dustpan beside her door. Then, she got to work.

Everything was very dusty, due to the lack of care over the long years before. Hinata ended up dusting everything off, only to find a note attached to the kitchen door. 'Good job – Next task: Wash the dishes. – Deidara.' It was funny, because there was a century's worth of unwashed dishes stacked up in the sink. Still, it was work, and _somebody_ had to do it. There were spider webs everywhere, rust on the handles of the sink, and spiders crawling at the bottom. She didn't like spiders…

Somehow she got through it; ended up going to the river in the back yard (which was practically a forest) and bringing it back to clean. When she finished, she found a note on the fridge. 'Thank you – Next task…' she took a second to look at the clock. It was already pretty close to 11 pm, and everyone was almost awake by now. 'Next task: Look behind you.'

Puzzled, she turned slowly to come face to face with Deidara. "Thank you for your hard work. If you wish, you may go to bed now." Hinata nodded, tilting her head to look at the other vampires gathering out into the hall.

"-yawn- Are we going soon? Damn, I'm thirsty…" This man had silver hair combed back and purple eyes. He suddenly turned to her and grinned. "So dinner came to _us_ this time, huh?" he took a step towards Hinata, but Deidara suddenly pushed her behind him, shooting a glare at the sliver-haired man. "Back off, Hidan. She's mine." Hinata blushed a little, ducking under Deidara's arm to see the other person's response.

"I see. This sucks – you're not really one to just get it over with. Why's she here?" he asked, eyeing Hinata and smirking. "If you haven't noticed, the floors are clean and the dishes are washed." Hidan glanced at the sink and at the floors. "…Oh. So she's the maid now?" he looked disappointed for a second. "Fine, I'll just go hunting like everyone else. Let's go, guys." He paused to wink at Hinata, then in a blur him and the rest of the people (except for Deidara) were gone.

Deidara turned to her. "Sorry about that. He's rather rude and… idiotic." Then he added, "But they're family to me." It came almost as an afterthought.

The word 'family' brought something to Hinata's attention: What happened to hers? Neji, Hanabi, Mother, and Father? Were they alright? She almost hit herself at forgetting about them. "Deidara…san." She attached the suffix awkwardly. He looked at her. "What… Where is… my family?" Hinata shuddered a little at the possibility of…

"Your family?" he stared at her with a small hint of confusion. "Your family is dead."

-:-

"Sheesh, dude, what'd you say to her?" Sasori was standing outside Hinata's room, beside Deidara. Both were confused upon hearing the uncontrollable sobbing coming from the girl. Deidara, in response to his friend's question, shrugged. "She asked about her family, and I said they were dead." Sasori was silent, then laughed at his friend's stupidity. Deidara reddened a bit and glared at him.

"You don't just say that kind of stuff to a girl, dude!" Sasori patted Deidara's back. "What _do _I do then?" Deidara asked, annoyed. "You have to apologize to her." The sobbing seemed to have grown louder. "Now seems a good time." Deidara motioned to knock on the door, but Sasori stopped him.

"If you want the girl, you're not supposed to be polite. Sweep her off her feet, barge in there." Deidara whacked Sasori on the head, but let himself in the room anyway.

-:-

Hinata was still in her maid's outfit, sobbing into a pillow. Her family was dead; killed off by a band of vampires. It was selfish of her to ask for help to live when her family was suffering and dying around her. She was terrible.

She heard someone come in, but at this point she didn't care. She was better off dead, with her family and relatives…

"Hinata…?" A cold hand was placed on her shoulder, and she shivered. Almost effortlessly, the hand turned her on her back. The person was Deidara. "I'm sorry." He said softly. More tears streamed out of her eyes. "I wanna die…" she moaned, rolling back on her face to cry. Deidara frowned, turning her to lay on her back again. "That's a very dangerous request in a place like this. Don't tell me that unless you really are willing to die." He said coldly, earning another wave of sobs from the girl.

Suddenly, she sat up and hugged him tightly. "I'm sad…" she murmured into his chest. Deidara paused, surprised at her action, but then rested an arm around her. "I can see that." They stayed like that for a while until the sobbing stopped.

"Hey… Deidara-san?" Hinata started. "Hm?" he looked at her. "Why are you… Why do you feel so cold?" she held his hand, trying to warm it up with her body heat. "Cold? Hm…" Deidara watched her in small amusement as she tried breathing on his hand to warm it up.

"It's… A vampire thing."

Hinata looked at him and smiled.

-:-

A whole month… and this is all I can crap out.

WHAT

THE

SHIT.

Why aren't I doing something relevant? Like homework? Kisame's Corner? Finding the meaning of life?

Because I was busy with Maple Story, xFire, WarRock (though it doesn't exactly work anymore for me…), Drawing…

I'M TERRIBLE.

AND MY FRIEND KNOWS I HAVE A ACCOUNT.

OH.

FUCK.

Anyway, Sorry for the long Author Hiatus and whatnot.

Doesn't mean i'll be back for long.

I'm still addicted to Maple Story.

(Scania, WinAlchemist)

...


	2. Family

Y'know, when I first started this story, I had no idea how I would write it. (I didn't know when I was gonna write it either, but…)

So I was thinking: It's gotten boring for me to write stories in an organized time order. What if I just randomly skipped periods of time to get the story moving? :

So yeah… Fall!

-:-

"Deidara-sama…"

"Hm?"

"How long have I been here…?"

"Hm… I'd say almost a month now, seeing that it's gotten significantly colder since you first arrived."

"Colder… It's almost winter?"

"Yes. When the weather turns colder than me."

-:-

Indeed, an entire month had passed since Hinata arrived at the Akatsuki Lair. She was accepted by the vampires, even though she was human. The mansion was a lot cleaner and brighter than before, as well. Right now she was having tea to warm herself up; while keeping Deidara company.

She hasn't once returned to her village since she left. She hasn't regretted her life thus far, but she does wish that Deidara would trust her enough to find out where her family ended up. The truth was, he did trust her. It's just that he doesn't trust anyone else to watch over her – to comfort her when she saw…

Hinata finished her cup of tea and set it gently on the table, staring out the window for lack of something better to look at. Deidara studied her carefully, as he has been for the past thirty days. She wasn't all that talkative, he observed, and she listened and obeyed very well. She was slightly clumsy, occasionally tripping on her own feet. He was glad she did that, for then he was there to catch her, to touch her for a brief minute before letting go. He'd forgotten what the warmth of a human being felt like without the coating of blood.

Deidara soon finished his tea as well, setting it down without a sound. He gazed at Hinata because she was the best thing to look at. Hinata didn't pay any mind to him, and didn't exactly mind him staring at her, as he had been for the past four weeks. He wasn't all that talkative, she noticed, and he didn't really listen to anyone else but her. He is very well mannered, and not clumsy at the least. Very cool and collected. He's always there to catch her when she accidentally trips and falls. She's constantly reminded of how cold vampires feel.

There was a small sound from one of them. Deidara's eyes darted around the room for a second before settling on Hinata again. It was her; she yawned. Such a human, this girl was. He smiled a little – he was doing that a little more often nowadays – as she rubbed her eyes and looked back at him. Her cheeks reddened as she realized how much noise she made. Now he chuckled, another rare thing for him. "Tired, are we?" he asked coolly, watching her nod her head. "I've had a weird sleeping pattern lately. I know its a little past midday, but I can't help but feel sleepy. Almost like I'm supposed to be awake at night." She replied softly.

Deidara stood up. "I understand. Perhaps I should leave you to sleep then, hm?" her head snapped up to look at him, her face flushed. "N-No, no! I don't mean it like that – I mean, y-you don't have to leave… that is, if you w-want to stay here…" she fell silent, embarrassed at her sudden outburst. Deidara smiled a little wider. "If you wish for my presence here, then I shall grant it." He told her smoothly, smirking as she turned a darker red. Human emotions were so amusing.

"Th-That is… Um… I-I don't mean to keep you…" she fidgeted and kept her eyes downward. Deidara sat back down, gazing at her again. "A lonely vampire like me has nothing to be kept from." Hinata started to protest, but stopped herself. Then she whispered, "We can be lonely together then, Deidara-sama." His eyes widened in the slightest. How was she lonely? By his observations, the current residences here took a fine liking to her. They talked to her, played games with her, kept her busy and away from him…

But… the vampires here were far from her family. A month just wasn't enough. Not yet. He wondered which one of them she was closest to.

The silence between the two lasted a couple minutes. "Now, what would lead you to saying that?" he wondered, speaking out loud so she could answer. Hinata looked at him. "I… I don't…" she sighed. "I wish, sometimes, that I had someone to talk to." Deidara closed his eyes in thought. _Doesn't she consider me a 'someone'? I may not look it, but I can give advice if I wanted to. I have ears, if she needs someone to listen. I'm here…_ he opened his eyes again, and only a second passed by before he began speaking. "I'm here. All the time. Call me, and I'll be there."

Hinata paused, then smiled. "Thank you, Deidara-sama."

-:-

Sasori walked up to Hinata with a box. "Hinata-chan! I have something for you!" He said happily, placing the box in her hands. "Huh?" Hinata stared at the box for a second before opening it. "It's to celebrate you're first month here at Akatsuki! Glad you didn't die yet!" he laughed a little as Hinata shivered a bit. "Th-Thank you…" In the box was a necklace decorated with deep blue stones. "I'm glad Deidara brought you home. The least I can do, really." Sasori shrugged.

"Aw, Sasori-sama…" Hinata hugged him, only to be pushed away gently. "It may not look it, but I have very little self-control. It'd probably be safer if you didn't come so close to me." He smiled calmly. "Oh… Sorry…" Hinata backed up a step, giving him an apologetic look. "It's okay, though. You don't have to beat yourself up over it." He patted her back. "Why don't you try the necklace on? I want to see." He said, changing the subject. Hinata nodded, taking the necklace from the box. Sasori draped it over her neck, latching it behind her.

"Gosh, you're pretty." He chuckled lightly, earning a blush from the girl. Sasori smiled. "Hinata, you're such an angel. I don't know how you ended up in a place like this." He murmured. Hinata gave him a confused look. "Uh… what…?" she stepped closer to him. "It's nothing." He replied, shaking his head. "I think Deidara's getting mad at me – I'd better leave you alone." He glanced behind her, at the small yellow bat in the corner of the ceiling. Hinata followed his gaze, but saw nothing. "Um… Alright. I'll see you later, Sasori-sama." Sasori flashed her a smile. "Yup. Later."

Sasori disappeared in an instant, becoming a blur down the hallway. In his place stood Deidara, who eyed the necklace carefully. Hinata stared at him worriedly. "Is anything wrong, Deidara-sama?" she asked softly. "…Do you want to… visit your village, Hinata?" he asked. Hinata's eyes widened a bit. "V-Visit… Konoha? Y-Yes! I do, I do!" she said excitedly. Deidara stared at her with soft, unfocused eyes. Hinata shrunk down a bit, looking down and blushing. "I-I mean… I do, but… if it's too much trouble…"

It wasn't too much trouble. If it was her, it was never too much trouble. She just wasn't ready… to see what had become of her village. The conditions there became so bad, the Akatsuki decided to feed from a different village.

"Hinata… I will take you to your village." Hinata felt happiness well up inside her. "Oh, thank you, thank you, Deidara-sama!" She exclaimed happily. Deidara couldn't help but smile a little at her. "Please prepare yourself in the next fifteen minutes. I'll be waiting at the front door." And in a blur, he was gone. Hinata hurried to her room and changed.

-:-

"What… What happened…?"

The streets were deserted. The houses were broken into and robbed of everything valuable.

"Your village has deteriorated since your family's absence."

Those who could leave did. Unfortunately, that wasn't saying much. Only a few people were outside. They were looking for some kind of nourishment. They gave Hinata and Deidara strange looks. The two seemed so out of place with their fine clothes and clean faces in this town. It wasn't right.

Deidara studied her reactions carefully, basing his own actions on her feelings. He saw her break down a little. He wrapped one cold arm around her shoulders and walked her deeper into the worn down city. It was silent as they stumbled upon the old Hyuga Estate. Hinata never felt this reluctant to be back home.

She carefully opened the gate and walked in. The halls were covered in dust. Surprisingly, nothing was taken. Pictures, furniture, meaningless trinkets from who-knows-when – nothing was moved from its place. Hinata headed for the family pictures on the wall in the living room. She wiped the layer of dust from the glass covering, feeling tears well up in her eyes. Deidara waited patiently by the door.

Hinata moved to sit on the musty old couch, covering her face in her hands. Soft sobs could be heard. Deidara did nothing. He didn't know what to do. He couldn't just let her feel like this without doing something about it. Without noticing, he began walking around until he found a certain room that could help him out.

As Hinata finished her crying, an unsettling silence fell in the room. She searched for Deidara, but he wasn't at the door or in the next room. She decided to wait for him in the living room – this left her time to think. But, only a few minutes later, Deidara returned from wherever he went, and handed her a small doll. Hinata gave him a confused look.

"I can't stand seeing you so sad, Hinata. Please… feel better soon." _I want to see you're smile again. _Hinata stared at the doll. It was the one her mother gave her for Christmas when she was five. It brought back many memories of her childhood…

--

_A little five-year-old girl fell flat on her face. She began crying, calling for her older brother to help her. He didn't hear her, and he kept on running, his form growing smaller and smaller the farther he got. The girl had hurt her knee real bad, and couldn't get up. The doll she was carrying fell out of her hands when she fell and was now just out of reach. She cried a little more, deprived of the comfort from her favorite doll. _

"_Don't cry, little girl." _

_The girl looked up to see a boy about the same age as her brother. He had long blonde hair and blue eyes. He was holding her doll out to her, while the other one offered help to stand. _

"_Are you the sister of the boy up the street? He's looking for you, you know." The little girl held her doll tightly while leaning on the strange boy for support. "C-Could you… Could you take me to him please?" she asked softly, still crying a little. The boy smiled a little. "Of course I can. What's your name?" he asked. "Hinata Hyuga." Hinata answered, wiping the last of her tears on her doll. "What's yours?"_

_The boy paused. "My name… it's D-"_

--

"Hinata?"

Hinata snapped out of her thoughts. She realized that they were already walking back to the Lair. It was almost sundown, she noticed. Something else was off as well. She couldn't place her finger on it… but she could have sworn that they were walking. Why weren't her legs moving?

She almost fell to the ground when she realized that Deidara was carrying her.

"You fell asleep after I gave you the doll. I didn't know if you wanted to keep anything from your house, so I just brought the picture and your doll." Hinata looked at her lap. The doll was on top of the picture of her family. "Do you wish to go back and retrieve something else?" Deidara offered. Hinata shuddered at the thought of seeing the dire conditions of the town again. "I-I'm fine… Thank you, Deidara-sama."

The two were silent the rest of the way. When they arrived, Deidara forgot to put her back down. She felt so natural in his arms like that.

"Um… D-Deidara-sama?"

"Hm?"

"I-I can w-walk now…"

"Oh. Of course."

-:-

That night, Hinata found a way to the roof. Well, not exactly the roof, but the attic with many windows. She opened one canopy window and sat there, illuminated in the moonlight. She stared off into the distance, the lights of a nearby town sparkling the horizon. The cool breeze made her shiver, but she was used to the cold by now. Everyone was out feeding. She was alone in this mansion with no intention of running away. This was home now.

The entire place was silent. At least, it was until she heard a light creaking noise from behind her. She paid no mind to it. She didn't have much to lose if it was a threat. Her family was gone. Her town was left in ruins. Nothing was stopping her from anything. If she died she wouldn't have anything to regret.

Two cold hands covered her eyes.

"Guess who." A familiar voice said coolly into her ear.

"Shouldn't you be with the others, Sasori-sama?" Hinata answered with an equal amount of cool as Sasori did. "I didn't want you to be lonely in the house." He sat beside her, an arm around her waist. He tended to do that a lot. He told her it showed that they were very close friends. She didn't know either.

"So what's up with you, Hinata?" he asked casually, gazing at the stars. "You look sad. Deidara do something to you?" he leaned his head on her shoulder, sniffing her neck briefly before pulling away. "N-No… Deidara-sama didn't do anything…" Sasori's silence made her continue.

"We… visited my village today." Sasori looked down. Hinata's voice cracked a little as she spoke. "Everything was… different." A tear rolled down her cheek, and she wiped it away. My house was the same, though. Only one thing was missing…" she bit her lip, holding back tears. She began to tremble. Sasori held her a little tighter. "M-My… My family… wasn't… there…" Hinata started crying then. She didn't know why it was bothering her so much now. Something in her hurt whenever the word 'family' was brought up. Something in her heart ached.

Hinata needed something. A reassurance of sorts. Something to give her a reason for living. Something… to warm her heart…

Sasori held her hand. The sudden chill in her arm pulled her from her depressing thoughts. "Hinata." He said sofly, letting their fingers interlace. "_We're_ your family. _This_ is your home now." Hinata cried into his shoulder. "Thank you… Sasori-sama…" she hugged him tightly, but he hugged tighter. It felt warm, in a strange way. It felt… nice.

--

"Hey you."

Hinata, who was sweeping the floor on the second story of the house, turned to face a man who called himself Hidan. His hair was silver and slicked back, and his eyes were a purple kind of color.

"Yes?" she replied calmly.

"We don't really talk much. Won't you join me for a cup of tea in the lounge room?"

Hinata was puzzled by this sudden request – especially from a man as rude and outgoing as Hidan – but nodded anyway. Hidan smiled. "Thank you."

In truth, Sasori had told him what he and Hinata were talking about in the attic. He figured that it must have felt pretty bad to have your family be killed. Lonely, too. She didn't have anyone to relate to in this horrid world anymore, and that, frankly, just sucks. He felt that she needed to know that, even though they were the cause of it, they could offer some of the comfort a family could give.

The two sat in silence, staring at the other or down at their cup of tea. Hidan was no expert at conversations, and neither was her. Though, _one_ of them had to start something.

"Sasori told me that you were very sad the other day." Hidan stared at her, his eyes carrying a small hint of worry. "Yes. I really was." Hinata admitted, frowning a bit at the thoughts she had in mind that day. "He probably told you this already, but we can be family too." Hidan saw her tremble a bit. "I-I know. Thank you." She said, her voice cracking a bit. It hurt to think about it at all. Her heart began to ache again.

Hidan just watched her crumble in front of him. "It's okay to cry." He said softly. She did, quickly putting the cup on the table and wiping the tears away. She sobbed uncontrollably, and Hidan couldn't help but move to sit beside her and comfort her. "It hurts to think about it, huh?" he could relate, he guessed. He himself wasn't always a vampire. Back then, way, way, way back then, somewhere in that dark past of his, he was human. He could relate.

"It does." Hinata nodded when she calmed down a bit. "I've been hurt like that before." Hidan continued. She listened carefully as he talked about his family; his human years; and how he became a vampire. When he finished the two shared a small silence.

"That was the most I've spoken in a long time." He said. Hinata nodded once more, smiling a little. "The last time I did talk to someone, it was that old coot who lives a couple doors down. Kakuzu." Hidan leaned a little closer to her to whisper something to her. "He's almost fifty, y'know." Hinata nodded awkwardly, wondering why he had to whisper this fact to her. "That dude has better hearing than anyone here – and his being a vampire doesn't help much." Hinata giggled a little.

"But that just means he's good at listening. We all are. You can talk to us anytime about pretty much anything." He paused for a minute. "I mean, anything you _want_ to tell us. Don't wanna hear about 'girl functions' and all that. Unless you want me to _check_ on those 'girl functions', then I'd be there to listen…" He noticed that Hinata was blushing. "I-I mean, you can talk to us whenever, alright? That's what I'm talking about." Hinata nodded, giggling a little. "Thank you, Hidan-sama." Hidan smiled.

--

"Hey, Hidan."

"Huh?"

"Who're you calling an old coot?"

"…"

-:-

Hehe…

I dunno XD;

I really, really, don't.

YA OLD COOT D:


	3. Zetsu

EHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEH.

Time: Another month (month 2)

-:-

She was sure that she had spoken to every resident of the mansion by now. All except for one – the Venus flytrap in one corner of the house. From afar he'd look like a normal houseplant (as far as normal goes in this place), but getting a closer look (Which probably would've done you better not to have gotten), there was a man. His skin was black and white on either side, and his eyes were a certain shade of yellow. His hair was green, matching to the leaves growing on his sides. He seemed like he had quite a few stories to tell. There was only one small problem, however:

Hinata was scared shitless of him.

Now, if you were anyone with common sense, you'd be scared to some degree of this plant-man. He didn't look too happy most of the time, and, guessing from his surroundings, he was probably some kind of vampire as well. How well-controlled was he? As in, could he resist biting her if he wanted to? How could he move if he's bound by the pot he lives in? Many more questions raced through her head as she slowly took a few steps toward the creature.

--

"Oh, you mean Zetsu?"

"Y-Yes. The… plant over there in the corner."

"He can be harmless."

"'Can be'?"

"Well, don't provoke him, and you can have an easy conversation with him."

"O-Oh."

"Don't worry. He doesn't talk much. You don't have to talk to him unless you absolutely _need_ to."

"Doesn't he get lonely like that?"

"We wouldn't know; He barely talks to himself, let alone us."

"…"

--

Before she knew it, she was standing in front of the plant called 'Zetsu'. She stared at him, and he stared back, blankly – as if he were bored.

The silence was almost a sport between them, and he was a professional. Hinata summed up all her nerve (which, to her dismay, wasn't much), and began to speak.

"H-Hello... N-Nice to meet you…"

Zetsu just stared at her. "…Z-Zetsu-sama." It came out more as a question than the ending to a greeting. The plant blinked once, and the last of Hinata's bravery disappeared. He didn't seem interested in anything she had to say. "Um…"

There was another silence, and unknowingly the tension rose a bit.

"Can I help you with something?"

Hinata's head snapped up and looked at Zetsu in wonder.

"It's very rude to stare, little girl."

Hinata blushed a dark red, turning away from embarrassment. "S-Sorry." She managed to say.

"What is it that you needed to talk to me about?" Zetsu gave her a bored look. "No-Nothing, Zetsu-sama, but I was just… wondering about something is all." Hinata played with her fingers and glanced up nervously at him. "And what is it you are wondering about?" he inquired, his tone hinting that he was slightly annoyed. Afraid that she might do something to mortally piss him off, Hinata decided to talk to him later. Much, much later.

"I-It's nothing. Sorry to bother you!" She bowed quickly and hurried down the hall, almost bumping into someone on the way.

-:-

"She tried speaking to Zetsu today."

"And she survived?"

"I'm surprised too."

"Zetsu didn't eat her… that's unheard of!"

"Oh come on. Give Zetsu some credit – he just has a little less self-control than you do, Sasori."

"What_ever_, Deidara."

There was a sigh, and then someone left the room. The one that was left looked out the window, smiling at how brightly the moon shone.

"That girl… is very interesting."

The one that left the aforementioned room entered another one down the hall. There, he watched its inhabitant sleep soundly under warm covers.

-:-

Hinata stepped out of her room, feeling determined. She was going to talk to the plant called Zetsu and start a conversation – no matter what.

The plant was in the same place as before; she wondered if he ever got bored sitting there in the corner – ah, another conversation topic.

Zetsu looked at Hinata as she stepped up in front of him. Taking a deep breath, she asked in a voice that pissed confidence,

"How _are_ you!?"

At first the plant stared blankly at her. Regardless, Hinata kept her expression and mental condition proud and determined. Then the plant chuckled lightly. "I'm fine, thank you." He replied formally, smiling a little. Hinata smiled back.

The two talked about conversations that I do not wish to write here (but the words were thoughtful and kind). The day seemed to pass into the afternoon with ease. This was indeed the most Zetsu the houseplant has ever spoken in the history of this mansion. This was indeed the most _any_ houseplant has _ever_ spoken in the history of the world, I suppose.

(House plants usually don't speak.)

Hinata learned a lot about Zetsu in this one conversation. They were talking about his plant species before, and somehow it melted into his entire familial background. He was an experiment in a laboratory – a success to one, a horror to the rest. After a long chain of events, Zetsu ended up in this mansion. A little later, the vampires began moving in, and one of them – the one with the orange mask, Tobi, -- decided to take care of him.

Hinata was deeply interested in Zetsu's story. She wanted to hear more, but she had to get to work. She stood up and stretched.

"That was a very nice talk, Zetsu-sama." Zetsu nodded, smiling at how much he had spoken. He really did have much to say, he just… didn't know how to start up a conversation like the one just now.

"Well… I've got cleaning work to do – I'll talk to you later, okay, Zetsu-sama?" Hinata started walking away slowly, waiting for the plant's response. "Please do." He smiled as she walked down the hall and around the corner, disappearing out of his sight.

-:-

Things that occurred on October 29th:

A sudden realization.

A room being raided for clothes.

Sewing.

Less cleaning.

More decorating.

A cape.

"There! Finished!"

A sigh.

Then, someone goes back to their room, a content smile on her face.

Then, vampires return.

"Wh… What _is_ all this!?"

-:-

Hinata sneaked into Deidara's room that day on the 30th of October. She was no longer uncomfortable with anything about Deidara. They were almost like friends, if he allowed her to call it that. The same was with Sasori, Tobi, and even Zetsu. Soon, she hoped, she'd get to be this close with all of the people in this mansion.

"Deidara-sama! May I ask a favor of you?" She asked, walking up to where he was sitting beside the window. Deidara glanced at her, cracking a small smile. "Yes, Hinata. What is it?" she seemed excited. "Can you take me to the nearest town for grocery shopping?" Groceries? Puzzled, he nodded. "…Does the food we prepare for you not fit your tastes?" he asked, concerned. Hinata shook her head rapidly, holding her hands up in defense. "N-No! The food you provide is just perfect! I just… need to get something extra. For the season, y'know?"

"Seasonal… grocery shopping?" Deidara was confused, but agreed to take her anyway.

The town happened to be Sunagakure. The leader of that town was exceptionally young, with red hair and greenish eyes. His face was serious most of the time, and on his forehead was a symbol that meant 'Love'.

For some reason, he was grocery shopping.

Now, the death of the Hyuga clan and the entire fall of Konoha was news that spread like wildfire in a forest of highly flammable objects. The thing was, it stayed in this boy-leader's mind for a long time. It puzzled him that the body of only one Hyuga was not found. The daughter. It was a mystery as to where she might be, or if she was alive at all. It was… overall… interesting.

If he were to find the girl, of course she could stay here in the village. Given her situation, it would take a while to adjust and go back to her normal life. But she would get used to it. And maybe… when she did… they could go out to dinner sometime. Maybe.

…

Hinata and Deidara walked towards the nearest grocery store and walked in. There were quite a few people there – maybe someone famous was nearby. Sifting through the crowd, Hinata found an aisle holding nothing but candy and chocolate. She grinned, dropping in her bag all of her favorites (that they could afford). They walked up to the cash register, and behind them in line was the dear leader of the town.

Just so you people know, the name of the illustrious leader of Sunagakure is Gaara. Gaara, you see, was a very sharp fellow. He noticed right away that the lady standing in front of him in line was the missing Hyuga from Konoha. He also knew that the man she was with wasn't any human being. But he couldn't expose both of them right now – there were too many people here. There'd be some kind of panic about the vampire, and there would be commotion about the girl. He had to catch them… alone.

"Thank you for taking me here, Deidara-sama!" Hinata giggled as she lifted up the bag of candy she bought. "You wanted to buy… sweets…? You don't plan on eating all of that by yourself, do you?" Deidara asked, almost sounding like a concerned parent. "Of course not! Do vampires like chocolate?" Hinata opened one of the bags of candy and handed one to him. He took it, slowly opening the wrapper and studying the brown bar. "…We've never tried such a thing." He replied, taking an experimental bite.

He loved it.

He took the rest of the bar, eating the rest of it elegantly, even though he was eating pretty quickly. Hinata laughed a bit. "Do you like it?" She asked. Deidara nodded, a look of almost embarrassment on his face. The two proceeded through the town, spending most of the day shopping with what little money they had. However... later in the day, when Hinata saw an outfit she took particular liking to from this one store, Deidara revealed that he had a lot more money than he had allowed Hinata to spend on groceries. Hinata insisted that he didn't have to spend more money on her, but he simply replied, "It's never a waste if it's for you."

She turned dark red then.

She was dark red now.

It was evening now. Their entire day was spent, and Hinata, as a human, was hungry. Deidara treated her to dinner (as he did everything else) at a small restaurant. They sat outside, their only source of light the lamps inside and outside the building. It was, in truth, a very romantic setting. Deidara was oblivious to it all. Even Hinata's nervousness and blushing.

"Th-This is really nice... Deidara-sama." Hinata started, trying to get a conversation going. "I suppose." Deidara agreed, taking a sip of the cup of coffee he ordered. He didn't have any interest in coffee, but in order to look slightly less freakish, he had to. They only ordered appetizers, and he let Hinata eat most of it. He had no need to eat. The lights suddenly dimmed; it was probably Happy Hour. Deidara stared at Hinata as she slowly ate her food. My, didn't she look dashing today? Dressed in simple jeans and a shirt, she was mighty fine.

"Say, Hinata." Deidara began, a small smile making its way on his face. "Hm?" she glanced up to look at him. "Is there... anyone you like in particular back at Akatsuki?" he asked, his voice lowering to a soft murmur. The question made her blush. "L-Like... in particular...?" she repeated. Deidara nodded. To distract herself, she took another bite out of the small meal she was eating. "Um... N... W-Well... Y-Yes... sort of... I-I'm not sure… exactly…" she heard him chuckle. "May I know who this lucky vampire is?" Hinata shook her head slowly, earning another chuckle from the blonde vampire. "May I guess?" he leaned on his arms that were propped up on the table. Hinata's silence told him to continue.

"Sasori?"

Nothing.

"Hm… Tobi."

No response.

"Zetsu?"

A slight shake of the head. _No._

"'Tachi."

A silent no.

"Kisame."

"Hidan."

"Kakuzu."

"Pein-sama?"

"Konan."

"…!?"

"Haha, I'm just joking."

Hinata cleared her throat.

"Hm… there doesn't seem to be anyone else except…" he trailed off, his eyes softly staring at her. She was biting her lip and bright red, her head turned to look anywhere but him. He moved so that he was sitting next to her at the table, leaning over to whisper in her ear.

"Do you like me?"

Hinata shut her eyes tightly, trying to sum up the courage to say her answer – whatever it may be. When she did, she took a deep breath and said –

"You there!"

The two turned around to see Gaara. He was panting; apparently he was running a few minutes before. "Are you… Are you Hinata… Hyuga?" Hinata stared at him for a little, then nodded. Deidara glared at the boy – a dangerous thing for a vampire to do if you're a human. Gaara noticed and glared back, forgetting his past theory of this man being a vampire. "Can we help you?" Deidara hissed, his fist clenching behind him. "No – But… But I have a few questions… for Ms. Hinata Hyuga here…" He was still tired. He ran a long way.

"Hinata Hyuga… Would you please join me to dinner?"

Gaara paused.

Something wasn't quite in order here.

Find the girl…

Confirm that she is Hinata Hyuga…

Let her settle in village…

Ask her to dinner.

Ah, there it is. That missing step. _Let her settle in village._ He was missing that one part of his plan. What a mistake. An even bigger one is the fact that he asked her in front of the _vampire_. Oh, Gaara, you silly goose.

"I… I uh… I mean, of course, that…" He gave up then. His excuse probably wouldn't erase the death glare the vampire was giving him. "I-I'm sorry, um… sir… but… I-I don't think I can…" Part of this was to calm Deidara down. The other part was because she's never seen this person in the history of ever. It was a _little_ odd that a random person walks up to you at a restaurant and asks you to dinner. Just a little.

"Er… A-Alright. Sorry to disturb you…" Gaara lamely walked away, cursing himself for his stupidity.

Deidara and Hinata decided to end their meal there, picking up the shopping bags and walking out of the restaurant. They made their way home, back to the mansion, deciding to bring up their past conversation another day.

-:-

Hallow's Eve. Halloween.

"Deidara-sama?"

"Yes?"

"Do you think anyone will come by today?"

"As in a guest? What makes you think there will be?"

"Well… Halloween is a day where kids run around in costumes to get candy… house to house…"

"To complete stranger's houses? That's insane! Why would you run up to a random stranger's house and demand food from them?"

"I-It's tradition… I think…"

"Tradition… Humans are…"

"Hm?"

"Strange."

"Strange…"

--

Hinata was sitting on the steps of the mansion, a bowl of candy in her lap. No one had come, and she had been there for almost two hours. She sighed, taking the bowl and walking back inside. She set it on the table in the kitchen and sat in the living room, feeling extremely disappointed.

Deidara walked into the room then, sitting beside her. She shivered a little – his arm was touching hers. He asked if she was okay.

"I'm fine… I just feel a little chilled when you're around."

"I feel a little happy when you're around."

Hinata looked up to him. He stood up and left the room.

-:-

Zetsu.

Gaara.

Halloween.

Uh…

Happy Halloween people x.x


	4. It's A Human Thing

So… Here's chapter 4.

What's this!?

Hints of plot!?

Haha, maybe.

-:-

_Hinata Hyuga,_

_I'm leaving._

_For reasons I can't tell you, I am moving far, far away. _

_I cannot tell you where I am heading to._

_I'm hoping that by making this change I can stay with you forever._

_I'm sorry._

_I love you. _

_-D…_

_The girl gripped the note tightly in her shaking hands. Her love was leaving. Tears streamed out of her eyes, and she hugged the letter to her chest. Her lips mouthed his name softly, small sobs following her silent words. _

_--_

_A boy of about ten was hunched over on the ground, a ripping feeling in his chest. He was in a gray room, blank walls, no furniture, no nothing – except for the locked door. He was left there to completely transform himself._

_A loud yell of pain came from him, and fangs now protruded from his mouth. His senses grew sharper, and his muscles bulged with sudden strength. He grew quite a few inches at once as well. It was a painful experience, but one thought relieved him of it all. _

_The thought of Hinata Hyuga. _

_Just thinking of her made this all the more bearable. But… the memories of her brought a different kind of pain – a kind that was much worse than what he was experiencing now. Having to leave her – the pain he caused her when he left… She must be hurting so much right now… _

_But… This was the only way… The only way for them to be together… was for them to be apart._

-:-

Hinata woke that morning with tears in her eyes. She quickly wiped them away and sat up, looking at the clock for the time. It was early morning – she didn't think anyone was back from the village yet. She held her breath to make sure; to listen.

Silence.

Since no one was home, she decided to get herself a glass of water. It was dark and cold, but she was used to that by now. She sat at the table, thinking about her dream. She remembered that letter… but not it's sender. In fact… as she thought about it… she couldn't remember her childhood very well at all. Who was that boy? Why did he have to leave? Why did it make her so sad…?

His name… apparently it started with a 'D'. D could be his name until her dreams decided to reveal more.

She's had many dreams about herself and D in the short time she's lived here. Perhaps… if she thought hard enough, she could remember who this D person was. Maybe she could remember that large portion of her childhood that she apparently forgot.

D… he was no doubt someone important. And she was someone important to him, probably.

Hinata put the glass of water to the side, resting her head on her propped arms on the table. She thought long and hard about what the person in her dreams looked like.

_D…_

-:-

A man and his wife were sitting at a table in a very familiar-looking kitchen in a very familiar-looking house. A very familiar-looking girl of about nine was listening into their conversation, letting the very familiar-sounding voices flow through her ears.

"_Her 'friend' has left, apparently." The man said. _

"_Thank goodness… I was getting so worried about her. I'm glad she's finally gotten over him." the woman nodded, a sigh of relief escaping her._

"_Me too. She was almost sucked into that kind of world forever. He wasn't even real."_

_The girl at the door was biting her lip to stop her from crying. Tears fell anyway, her heart sinking in disbelief at what she was hearing. _

_But… this was not completely true. She had proof that he existed. Inexcusable proof that he _did_ exist. He was real. And he would come back for her so they could be together forever in whatever world that ignorant man was talking about! He loved her and she loved him! Nothing could keep them apart for long! Nothing! Nothing…_

_Suddenly, the letter was crinkling in her hands. Suddenly, the girl stormed into the kitchen, tears overflowing from her eyes. She stared angrily at the two at the table. _

"_That isn't true!" the girl shrieked. "D------ is real! I love him! Look, see!? He wrote this!" The girl held the letter to the lady's face. The lady only gave the girl an apologetic look, exchanging a quick glance at the man before saying,_

"_Hinata, dear, there is nothing written on this piece of paper."_

_The girl, Hinata, didn't believe her. "No! He wrote it! Right there! 'I love you'. You don't believe me!?" Hinata turned the paper around, gasping when she saw no words written down. There was a silence in the room, and then an uncontrollable sobbing coming from the girl. "H-He… He did… write… He… He-He sent it to me… He was leaving… he was coming back… and we would be together…" Hinata wiped the tears away from her face, continuing her speech of disbelief. "…Forever." _

_The man stood up and slapped the girl. She fell to the ground, and the man ripped the blank paper apart, letting it fall in pieces on top of her. "The boy isn't _real_, Hinata! He wasn't ever and never will be! Cease this total nonsense at once! The heir of the Hyuga clan cannot be speaking ridiculous shit like this!" Hinata stared at him, a hand cupping the sore cheek. "No… He was real…" she said this, yet felt no energy to defend her missing loved one. She was completely broken by the truth of this ignorant man's words. Maybe… she was the ignorant one. _

_The lady gently picked Hinata up, hugging her tightly in a hug. "I'm so sorry, Hinata. The boy you love isn't real." Hinata shook her head, tears falling from her eyes in a never ending waterfall. "N-No… He… He's coming back… No… No…" _

The scene in the kitchen faded to black. The girl remained, however, growing up into a lovely 15 year old. The setting was extremely familiar and recent – the year before her family was massacred by vampires. She had completely forgotten about her imaginary sweetheart. Her mind decided to push out any memories she had of him – that was a large chunk of her younger years. It was a little much, but it was effective.

The sad part of this girl's past was that the boy's letter wasn't the only proof she had that he existed.

When the boy and girl's relationship first started, the boy had given her a necklace. It was a silver locket in the shape of a bat, and the eyes of the bat were two rubies of the brightest red. The necklace was kept in a box of memories that was buried deep in her closet. The box has yet to be dug out. Her memories have yet to be unlocked.

-:-

Deidara stopped suddenly, standing frozen in the street.

"She's… hurting." He whispered aloud without realizing it.

Another action he performed subconsciously was leaving the town at once and speeding towards the mansion.

-:-

_Happiness is like a drug._

_Once you get it, it's around for only a little while._

_And then, when it's gone, you try to get it again._

_But then… the road to getting happiness is long and painful._

_Most times you don't even get it. _

_But when you do, _

_The feeling is as good as getting high. _

-:-

The doors to the mansion slammed open, and immediately the vampire stormed to the kitchen as fast as he could. He reached the girl sleeping at the table in less than a minute, and was at her side in less than a second. He reached out to her in a quick motion, and in that instant the girl awoke from her slumber, staring at the vampire in surprise.

"Deidara-sama…"

Tears were suddenly flowing from her eyes. She reached out to him and cried, sobbing uncontrollably into his bloodstained clothes. His arms wrapped around her shaking form, cold and strong, comforting her in the strangest of ways.

"It's… going to be alright." He whispered to her, kneeling down to her level. She got a better grip on him then. She hugged him tighter, staining her white sleeping gown red with the blood on his cloak. "How long are you going to stay with me, Deidara-sama…?" She said softly, without thinking. Deidara's answer caught them both by surprise.

"Forever."

-:-

Sasori was the second one to arrive home. He noticed that Deidara was gone, so he headed back. It was still pretty early to leave the village from hunting, and he wished he had stayed.

He saw Hinata clinging to Deidara as he held her lovingly.

His fist clenched a little, but released it after entering the doorway.

She was asleep, and Deidara was just watching her. He looked up when Sasori took a seat beside him at the table.

"Is she alright?" he asked. "Yes." Deidara answered, keeping his eyes on the girl.

Deidara smiled a little before standing up, carrying Hinata bridal style. "I should probably take her to bed now, huh?" he kicked the door open and took Hinata back to her room. Sasori remained in the kitchen, an almost pained expression on his face.

_They're meant for each other, but the one I love is…_

-:-

Hinata woke up in the middle of the afternoon, but it was somehow still dark. Perhaps the days _were_ getting shorter. It was exceptionally cold, and an extra chill that she was all too familiar with notified her of one thing:

A vampire was lying beside her.

She was sleeping in her bed, so she turned slowly to see who the person was. Deidara rested a hand on her hip so she wouldn't crash into him. She blushed, and he would have too, if he had any kind of human function to allow him to. "Are you… alright?" he asked softly. Hinata nodded slowly, her blush increasing when he cupped her face. His cold hand didn't cool her off as it should've.

"Your face… It's especially warm right now. My hand isn't cooling you off either." He said, confused.

Hinata couldn't believe that he'd never heard of blushing before.

"It's… It's a human thing."

Deidara stared at her with a look of amusement this time. Hinata turned an even darker red and looked away from him, shutting her eyes tight. Then she heard something that she had never heard before.

Deidara laughed.

--

"Deidara-sama…"

"Yes?"

"What are you… What are you doing in my bed in the first place?"

"Hmm… Well… I decided to watch you sleep tonight."

"Oh. Why do you want to watch me sleep?"

"It's a Deidara thing."

"… Deidara thing… huh?"

"Is something wrong with that?"

"…You're silly."

"And what are you?"

"Sleepy."

-:-

Sasori and Deidara were sitting on the rooftop of the mansion, staring at the rising moon. The others were getting ready to leave and hunt, but the two on the roof decided to go later. Sasori glanced at Deidara and said, "You like her, don't you?" Deidara looked at him. "What?"

"Hinata. You like her." Sasori repeated.

"Well, of course I like her. You like her too. I think everyone has taken a liking to Hinata." Deidara said, the term 'like' meaning tolerate or 'not hate'.

"Fine. I'll put it this way – you _like_ her." Sasori put emphasis on the word, hinting to Deidara the second meaning. "…What of it? I think you _like_ her too." If he was able to, Deidara would feel embarrassed. Sasori shook his head.

"Oh no, I _hate_ Hinata."

Deidara stared – almost glared – at Sasori for saying that. "What do you mean?" he asked in a low tone; annoyed.

"She's getting in the way of something important to me. She's distracting."

Deidara had no idea what he was talking about. But he was angry, because the one thing he was pretty sure of was that it was Hinata he was using those untrue adjectives on. He leaned a little closer to Sasori, to show that he was angry.

"Don't talk about her that way. I mean it. What are you badmouthing her for?" he asked. Sasori shrugged. "She's taking away someone important to me." Deidara was sure that Hinata wasn't capable of the act of stealing. Unless, of course, the thing she was stealing was his heart. She had done a fine job of taking that.

Sasori looked at Deidara and sighed. "I don't think you're quite getting this."

A moment passed, and Sasori's lips met with Deidara's for a split second before pulling away.

"I _hate_ Hinata."

Another moment passed, and Sasori was gone, leaving Deidara frozen on the roof.

-:-

Oh, TWA, you silly goose.

…No, TWA, you crazy goose.

…No, TWA, you crazy BITCH.

WHAT THE HELL YOU DOING!?

Putting Yaoi in one of your stories – shame on you!

But I couldn't help it! – BULLSHIT!

As always, expect things to make less sense. I thought this story was going good so far until my brain shitted this out.

[BTW: OMGOMGTWILIGHTMOVIEOUTNOVEMBER21!!!!!]


	5. Apart and Together

SasoDei…

Hehe…

I'M GONNA HAVE FUN WITH THIS.

-:-

Confusing.

That was a pretty good word to start this part of the story with.

Confusing.

Perplexing.

Puzzling.

Other adjectives that describe Deidara's situation at the moment.

On reflex, he darted to Hinata's room. Just being near her calmed him, and watching her pulled him away from his thoughts. And right now he needed just that.

Without meaning to, he slammed the door open and walked in, grabbing a chair and sitting at her bedside. Surprisingly, she didn't wake up. He stared at her for a long while until she started to wake up. She stretched and sat up, brushing her hair away from her face and stared at him with a puzzled look.

"Oh, Hi Deidara-sama… is there something you need?" she asked, rubbing her eyes from sleep. Slowly, Deidara reached for her hand. "Hinata…" he started, tightening his grip on her for a second. "Yes?" She looked worried now; she leaned closer so she could see his face better. "Have you ever…" he took a minute to gather his thoughts. "Have you ever been through a time that required someone else's assistance?" Her look changed back to confusion, but still held the same concern she expressed before.

"As in… A time when you needed to… be near someone… for no apparent reason at all?"

Hinata's eyes widened a little, then softened down, grasping his hand in both of hers. "Deidara-sama, I'm sure that when you visit the person you want to be close to right now you'll feel better." Deidara smiled. She had no idea.

Hinata scooted away from him on the bed. "Well, I might not be the person you want to be with right now, but I can listen to you. Want to sit on the bed with me?" She asked innocently, patting the empty spot beside her. Deidara studied her for a bit, then agreed, taking off his cloak and shoes and climbing in beside her.

"So… talk." She rested her head on her knees, staring at him sweetly with a small smile on her face. Deidara stared at her for a little before saying,

"I think I just want to _be_ here right now." So the two sat in silence for a long time. Hinata eventually had to go back to cleaning the mansion, and the other vampires were returning from the village. Deidara made it a point to be in the same room Hinata was cleaning in to give himself company. Or to avoid a certain red-haired vampire downstairs. Occasionally Hinata would start up a conversation, but it would only last for a few words.

Hinata had finished cleaning upstairs. She told Deidara that she was going to greet everyone downstairs, encouraging him to come with her. He did, not being able to refuse any of her requests.

Inevitably, Deidara ran into Sasori.

Unfortunately, Hinata was under the impression that she and Sasori were 'friends'.

"Sasori-sama! Hi!" she walked up to him with a smile on her face, oblivious to the true feelings behind that smile he gave her. "Hello, Hinata. How are you?" Deidara studied Sasori carefully. Now that he knew that he hated the girl he was talking to, his smile started to look even more… fake. Sasori glanced at Deidara and smirked a little when he noticed he was staring. Deidara flinched back a bit in surprise.

"I'm a bit tired, but if there's anything you need, I'm here!" She grinned at both of them. Deidara couldn't help but smile back, but frowned a little when he looked back at Sasori. "Well, you can go rest up. I don't think we need anything. Except for me – I need to speak to Deidara for a few minutes." He flashed a smile at her again, and she nodded and left.

When he was sure that they were alone, Sasori ran his finger down Deidara's cheek and grinned. "You should really keep away from her, if you know what's good for… her." Deidara gulped as Sasori's hand ran down to his chest. His finger wrapped around his tie and pulled him closer, so that he could whisper in his ear. "You never know what _someone_ might do…" Deidara clenched his fist. "Stop this, Sasori. Hinata… She didn't do anything to you. She shouldn't have to go through whatever you're –"

He kissed him.

"I gave you simple instructions to follow… I think you can handle it." Sasori fixed Deidara's tie and patted it twice. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do." With that, he moved out of sight, leaving Deidara with a shaky feeling. How far would Sasori go to get him away from Hinata? What would he do? One thing was for sure, however. He had to protect Hinata in any way he could.

He had to be apart from her from now on.

-:-

_I wonder how Deidara-sama's doing…_

Hinata stood in the middle of the hallway, a broom grasped loosely in her hands. She absently swept the broom over the surface of the dusty floor, daydreaming about whatever came to her mind. Deidara showed up a lot. So did D.

Now that she thought about it, her vision of D and Deidara were very alike. Almost as if Deidara were the older version of D. But that wasn't possible, really. Sure, the first letter of their names were the same , and they looked alike, but that didn't mean Deidara was D. I mean, lots of other people have long dark blue hair, right? Just the same with long blonde hair up in a ponytail.

She also took into account, on the side of Deidara being D an impossible idea, that according to her more recent flashback dream, that D was probably imaginary. He didn't exist. It made her sad to think that. But it was as close to the truth as she could get from her mind. As far as she knew, Deidara wasn't imaginary.

_Deidara-sama… he seemed troubled while he was watching me clean today… He seemed to act odd when he was near Sasori-sama too… I wonder… did something happen between them?_

It wasn't long before someone noticed her in the hallway. The person walked up to her and put a hand lightly patted her back once. Hinata was pulled from her thoughts. She looked at the person and smiled at who it was.

"Hi, Sasori-sama!" she grinned at him.

"Daydreaming at work, huh?" Sasori chuckled a little.

"I'm just thinking, that's all." Hinata giggled a little. "Oh really? What about?" Sasori asked curiously. "Well… I've noticed something… about Deidara-sama." Her mood was almost serious now, almost worried. "Deidara?" His tone urged her to continue.

Hinata paused to think of her words. "Is Deidara-sama… okay…?" Sasori stared at her for a minute. "Hm… I could go ask him for you, if you like." He offered, patting her back again. "O-Oh. W-Would you?" She stammered, startled at the sudden pat to the back. "…Of course. I'll ask next time I see him." Hinata nodded, smiling at him as he walked away.

"I'll see you around, Sasori-sama."

Sasori waved back. "Not for long, I hope." He murmured to himself, turning at a corner and disappearing from sight.

-:-

Deidara was in his room, lying on the bed for who knows how long. If he couldn't be with Hinata, then he wouldn't be with anyone at all. He'd just… shut himself in his room until he figured something out. How could he explain to Hinata his situation if he was forbidden to talk to her? He didn't want Sasori to do whatever the hell he was going to do to her, so… what now?

They could meet in secret, if he could distract Sasori for some amount of time. Yeah… While the others were out feeding, he'd stay behind and talk to Hinata and… hide back in his room until the next night? The first half of that plan seemed like it would work.

Or… he could just ignore Sasori's threats and talk to Hinata anyway. What was the worst he could do with him around? Talk to Hinata, protect her at any costs. Seemed simple. I mean, Sasori considered Deidara to be very important to him, so he wouldn't dare hurt him, right?

The first option seemed easier.

The first option was what he was going with.

But it wasn't nighttime yet. And without knowing it, he drifted off to some sort of nap.

--

Something was wrapped around him when he woke up.

"Hello, Deidara…"

Deidara grimaced.

"What are you doing here, Sasori?"

Deidara tried prying Sasori's arms open, but they wouldn't budge. In fact, they seemed to tighten a little.

"Oh, that wench down the hall wants to know how you're doing is all…"

Sasori's head appeared over Deidara's shoulder, his lips against his ear. "Are you okay?" Deidara felt him undoing his tie, and he shoved him off. "No, as a matter of fact, I'm not okay." He spat, sitting up and fixing the tie. "Aw, why not? The bitch down the hall won't like to hear that." Sasori made Deidara lie down again, resting his head on his lap.

"Quit calling her those awful names." Deidara said sternly, sitting back up. "Hmm. No." Sasori wrapped his arms around his neck, resting his chin on his head. He was all over him today.

"Get off."

"Nu-uh."

Deidara sighed, deciding to just leave Sasori be until he got bored and left. He didn't. It seemed that he had gotten more attached to him as every minute passed.

"I love you, Deidara." Sasori murmured into Deidara's shoulder. Deidara stayed silent, registering the words through his head. He felt Sasori's lips press against his cheek. "No, I'm _addicted_ to you. Let me kiss you, Deidara." He felt that he had no choice. Deidara sighed and said, "Fine. Once."

Sasori was surprised that he actually got through. He didn't want to ruin his chance, so he pressed his lips to Deidara's for a quick second before pulling away. Deidara stood up and started walking away, but Sasori grabbed his arm. "What?" Deidara asked, almost annoyed. "That was only an experiment." He said mischievously. "So? I said only once." Deidara continued to walk away, but was suddenly pushed to the ground with Sasori on top of him.

"Come on. Again."

"Will it get you off of me?"

"Hmm… Depends."

"_Sigh._ Fine. Once. And I mean it."

Sasori held Deidara's face in his hands and kissed him hard, passionately until Deidara shoved him off. He looked embarrassed, wiping his mouth on his sleeve. "Wha-What the hell was that!?" he asked. "What do you _think_ it was? A _kiss_." Sasori licked his lips, smirking a little. "But-!! Your _tongue_!! What the _hell_!?" Deidara scrambled to his feet, glaring at Sasori, who just chuckled. "You're silly, Deidara."

Without bothering to mutter some response, Deidara left the room.

-:-

_It was when he sat at her bedside that night that he realized how much she meant to him._

The others were out feeding. She was sleeping. He was watching.

She was so peaceful when she slept. She calmed him – she was the light in his dark thoughts. She relieved him of the terrible things in his life. It was almost unbelievable how they first met… dying as he sucked her blood. It was a miracle that she lived through that…

A miracle…

That was what she was.

She was his miracle.

-:-

"_This potion will remove all memories of her 'friend'."_

"_Thank you."_

"_Be sure to give her just enough, or she'll lose more than the memory of her 'friend."_

"_Yes. I will. Thank you." _

_The man gripped the little girl's hand as they left the lady's shop._

_Hinata hated how adults thought kids didn't know. That they didn't understand. They do. They know what the word 'remove' means at age nine. They know what 'memories' are. They know what's going on._

"_Hinata," her father started when they got home. "Will you drink this?" he handed her the small cup that held just the right amount of potion for her to drink. Hinata shook her head. She knew what the potion would do. Honestly, even if he was imaginary, she didn't want to forget her friend. She was happy that someone like him even existed in her mind._

"_Will you drink it later?" the man asked. _

_Hinata shook her head. What didn't he get about the word 'no'?_

"_Okay. Never mind then." The man took the cup and poured it back into the bottle of potion. _

_Later that night, when Hinata was asleep, her father sneaked into her room. He poured the potion into the cup again and poured the liquid down her throat. When the cup was empty, he set the bottle on her side table and left. _

_Hinata rolled to the edge of her bed, her head lightly tapping the side table. The bottle on top fell on its side, pouring it's memory-erasing liquid into the girl's mouth. _

-:-

It was decided.

He would spend her day off with her.

Take her somewhere, a small outing.

During the day.

No one would notice.

He'd make sure of it.

--

Hinata had the day off today. She wondered what she would do. Maybe she'd just sleep the day away. But that seemed like such a waste… What else was there to do? She didn't want to bother any of the other people in the mansion, and she was no longer used to being outside alone…

"Hinata."

She turned around to see Deidara, dressed in extremely casual clothes (for him). He was wearing only raggedy jeans and a white dress shirt. He walked up to her, taking hold of her hand. "Could I… take you somewhere today?" he asked, smiling to look inviting. Without hesitation Hinata nodded, blushing a bit. He had no idea how good he looked when he smiled.

Deidara looked from side to side and then behind him, to see if anyone was there. He squeezed her hand once. "We can't let anyone else know, especially Sasori, okay?" he said, tugging her slowly toward the door. "Why?" Hinata asked, almost tripping. She was no match for the speed of a vampire. Deidara apologized quickly before sneaking her out the door.

"Because…" Deidara thought a moment. He had to make something up. "…He might want to go with us. I want it to only be you and me today." Hinata blushed, but nodded. "I-I see…" They stopped just outside the gates of the yard. She looked around in wonder, actually paying attention to the little details outside the place she lived.

Deidara smiled a little. He found her human-like features… interesting. Without realizing, he reached out and brushed a few strands of hair away from her face. She swerved around to look at him, her eyes carrying curiosity for his action. He only stared back for a minute before realizing that they were only just outside the front yard.

"Oh… We should… get going now, huh?" He took her hand and walked her to a small town nearby. He took her to the park, which had almost no people in it. Hinata smiled a little, recalling little snips of her past with her swinging on the swings and sliding down slides with her friends.

Her friends…

Before she could think too much on the subject, Deidara wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "I thought that it would be nice for you to go outside once in a while." He quickly withdrew his arm, shoving his hand in his pocket. Hinata smiled widely at him, giggling a little in delight. "I think I'm a little old to be playing in the jungle gym, but because we came all this way…" Hinata led him to the swings. They sat beside each other, and Hinata was already swaying from side to side. Deidara sat there, a confused look on his face.

Hinata stopped swinging. "Deidara-sama?" she asked, placing a hand on his arm. He looked at her, embarrassed. "How… do you… use this…?" he asked slowly. Hinata just stared at him for a little while. "Y-You don't know?" she inquired in disbelief, her hand tightening on his arm. Deidara shook his head.

She hopped off the swing and walked behind him. Gently, she pushed him forward, and he swung backward. Back and forth, back and forth. "And you just shift your weight to make you go higher." She stopped pushing him and sat on her own swing. Deidara nodded, doing as instructed.

Very quickly, he was already swinging up to the height of the metal poles of the swings. "D-Deidara-sama, that's a little high…!" Hinata got off her swing and looked him in the eye. He looked stunned.

"D-Deidara-sama…!!" Hinata reached her hand out, but stopped. He looked at her.

"How do you stop?"

"J-Just… I don't know, stop moving!"

"…I can't."

"Then… Uh…"

"…"

"J-Jump!"

And in an instant, Deidara was in the air, higher than a tree. He landed gracefully on his feet a few meters away. Hinata ran over to him. "D-Deidara-sama! Are you alright!?" she asked, alarmed. Deidara grabbed her arm. "…Never again." He sighed, walking towards a patch of grass and sprawling himself across the lawn. Hinata sat beside him.

Deidara regained his composure and sat up. He pulled Hinata onto his lap and wrapped his arms around her. He buried his face into her shoulder. She turned a dark red, placing a hand over his. "…Y-You okay…?" she whispered. A low groan escaped him, and his tense shoulders relaxed a bit. Hinata stayed silent so she wouldn't bother him.

In truth, Deidara hadn't had a proper time of rest for almost a week. His fatigue was now catching up to him. The little swinging incident didn't help much either. Hinata's presence calmed him, yet somehow it made him more jeered up. It was then that he realized that he didn't drink blood for three straight days. That was unhealthy for a vampire. Hinata's blood began to tempt him into biting her, and it made him even more tired to resist.

"Hinata…" he moaned in a low voice.

"Y-Yes?" Hinata turned a little, her hair moving to reveal her succulent neck.

Before he could sink his teeth into her throat, a small animal tried to scurry up a tree. Deidara reached for and grabbed it in less than a second, taking a big bite into its body and sucked it dry of all things red and iron-flavored. Hinata stared in shock at him as he threw the dead animal aside. "D-Deidara-s-sama…!" Hinata turned around and clutched his head. "A-Are you alright!?" she asked worriedly. Deidara just stared at her for a few minutes before chuckling a little.

"Why don't we head home?" he stood up and took her hand in his. The two began walking back, Hinata still worrying over him. He only laughed in response.

She had no idea how close she was to death. The thought was oddly humorous to him.

-:-

_Hm._

_So the two went out today, huh?_

_Oh, Deidara. It seems you've broken the rules. _

_That's a big no-no._

_Now both of you have to suffer the consequences. _

-:-

…Uh…

So…

…

Ehehe…

Bye x.x


	6. Sasori Is A Damn Good Actor

LOLOMGTWILIGHTPARTYATMYLOCALBORDERSBOOKSTOREWOOHOO

-:-

It was a rainy day that day. The clouds covered the sky and the rain pelted the earth, and a maid felt fortunate to have had her day off the day before. She was also happy that a certain resident of the mansion she was serving had wished to spend the day with her then. However, said person has been avoiding her ever since the new day started. The rain almost represented the way the maid felt at the moment: Sad.

Hinata wiped the window in the same formation as the last forty minutes: swipe, swipe, circle. Her attention was focused on the pitter-patter of the raindrops on the windowsill. Drops of water raced each other to the bottom, eating up the many smaller drops on the way. When the drop she was staring at reached the sill, a sudden rush of feelings flew through her. Happiness, anger, affection, compassion, guilt, hate, embarrassment, depression, desire… sadness…

Tears fell from her eyes and onto the window, joining the raindrops in their race to the windowpane. She gasped, quickly wiping the tears away from her face. Her hand tightened into a fist pressing against the glass.

…_Why does it hurt so much…?_

-:-

It was a vampire's kind of cold that day. The rain poured down and the clouds they came from were darker than ever. He felt fortunate to have spent the good day yesterday with a certain maid. However, such meetings like that have to be avoided from then on. It was too dangerous to even look at her with the same longing he held every time he glanced at her. It wasn't safe for either of them. The rain was almost a reenactment of an action he once saw humans do once: Cry.

Deidara stared out the window and to the scenery of the valley between the mansion and what was once Konoha. He knew that the city was slowly getting better, rising up from extreme poverty and into prosperity. The town was improving its condition, and if she could, his maid could move back to her home. He wondered if the rain was any obstacle in this process.

The door to his room opened. It was no mystery as to who it was, for the person wrapped his arms around his neck from behind.

"You're a naughty, naughty boy, Deidara." Sasori leaned on Deidara, kissing his neck softly. Deidara frowned, but found that resistance only appealed to the vampire more. "I love you, Deidara." He said. It made Deidara almost grimace. If he loved him so much, why would he torture him like this? All the worry about Hinata; if he loved him, why would he put him through all that?

"…Whatever you want." Deidara started, a hint of anger in his voice. "Hm?"

"Do whatever the _hell_ you want with me. Just leave Hinata alone."

This was a noble thing he was doing, Sasori had to admit. But his attitude with Hinata was a little too chummy, if you asked him. He needed to destroy one of them, and Deidara just wasn't the one. Sasori had to get rid of his love's distraction as soon as possible. He had to get rid of _her_.

"You're still distracted. I'll just have to fix that."

Sasori let go of Deidara and proceeded to leave the room. Deidara started after him. "Sasori, No –!" the door slammed in his face. He scrambled to open the door but there was some kind of hold on the knob. He had resorted to a kind of dark magic. He slammed the door with his fist and cursed under his breath.

"…Shit."

-:-

When Hinata had finished cleaning, she made her way back to her room in the darkness of the night. She entered her room and turned on the light.

"Welcome back, Hinata."

She looked up and saw Sasori sitting on her bed. He had his legs crossed and was propped up on his arms behind him. He smiled a little at her confused expression.

"H-Hi, Sasori-sama." She said, a little surprised that he was in her room so late at night. There was an odd silence in the room while the two stared at each other. Sasori kept smiling and Hinata kept… looking. "C-Can I help you…?" She stepped closer to the bed until she was standing at its side. Sasori reached out for her arm and pulled her beside him, his other arm wrapping around her. She squeaked in surprise, turning red in an instant. "S-Sasori-sama!?"

Sasori couldn't help but smirk a little at her. "Hinata – what if I told you that… I loved you?" he asked, leaning closer to her. She blushed even darker, her heart beating insanely fast. "L-Love…!?" she repeated, both hands over her heart to calm it down. Sasori only nodded, waiting patiently for her answer. Hinata just stared at him in wonder. What about her could possibly cause someone like him to fall in love with her?

"S-Sasori-sama… I… I'd really have to th-think about it…" she replied.

"…Do you not love me…?" he looked disappointed for a minute.

"N-No! S-Sasori-sama, I love you very much, but… I'm not sure if it's… the love _you're_ talking about…" Hinata assured, her hands up defensively in front of her. Sasori frowned, and Hinata felt a twinge of guilt in her. "Then… do you think… that I could just… stay with you tonight while you think…?" he asked innocently. Hinata nodded automatically to calm her conscience. Sasori smiled a little, hugging her around her waist.

"Thank you, Hinata."

"O-Of course, S-Sasori-sama."

--

When she was fast asleep, Sasori took out a small bottle from his pocket.

"Golly. I wonder if this actually works." He muttered to himself. He turned to Hinata and gently tipped her mouth open. He poured the small potion into her mouth and closed it, proceeding to lie down beside her when it was empty. "'I love you, Hinata'. Haha…" he chuckled to himself, staying in Hinata's room for the remainder of the night.

_That love potion better work. I have a lifetime with my Deidara waiting for me with that wench out of the picture. _

He rethought for a second.

…_I have forever to be with my Deidara. I think I'll have a little fun with this first._

-:-

Deidara heard a light _ka-chak_ late in the night. His door was unlocked. The spell had worn off. He quickly ran out and headed to Hinata's room. He had to be sure that she was safe. But what he saw was something he'd rather not see ever in his lifetime.

Sasori had his arm around her.

He was _hugging_ her.

He was sleeping in the _same bed_ as her.

There was an unfamiliar pang in his chest. The body part in his chest was… aching. He remembered reading about this feeling in a book once.

It was called Heartbreak.

-:-

Hinata woke up with a strange feeling inside her. Her heart was beating unusually fast and her face was red. Then she looked beside her and noticed a vampire staring back. "Good morning, my dear." He said smoothly. Hinata felt her heart explode when he smiled. "G-Good m-morning… Sasori-s-sama…" she stuttered back, her hand clutching her chest tightly.

A worried look crossed his face. "Are you alright? Is something wrong with your chest?" he placed a hand on her arm. Hinata felt a rush of happiness well inside her. "Y-Yeah… I'm fine…" she said softly. "Well… If it's not too much trouble to ask again…" Hinata looked at him. He seemed to feel a little awkward with what he was about to say.

"…I love you, Hinata. Do you love me back…?"

A smile spread across her face. "Yes, Sasori-sama. I love you." Sasori smiled too, leaning up to kiss her briefly before pulling back. "…I'm glad." He said, pulling her down to kiss him again. This time they stayed longer like that until Hinata had to stop for air. They both laughed a little before falling into a short silence.

_That worked better than expected. She was so easy._

--

Dear Mental Journal,

Today, Sasori-sama and I went out for a walk. I'm sure you've heard that he and I have been dating for the past few days. Things have been going great. I can really feel that he loves me as much as I love him. It's great. But I can't help but feel that someone's been watching us. I think Sasori-sama feels the same. I don't mind though. He seems to feel motivated to stay near me just to protect me from whoever is stalking us. I'm happy. I love him.

Deidara-sama seems to be sad all the time lately. I wonder what's wrong. Oh no… Could it be that… he _likes_ Sasori-sama? Is he totally against us being together? Oh, Deidara-sama, I'm sorry! But… I can't just break up with Sasori-sama – I love him very much. I just can't give him up. I hope you can understand.

Anyway, Sasori-sama's been talking about taking our relationship a step further. I'm not quite sure what he means, but if it's what most people would think, then I'm so embarrassed! Gosh, does he really feel that strongly about me? Oh god, it's exciting, actually. I don't know how to react. I wonder how long he can wait – because I'm not sure I'm mentally prepared for him to be… _that_ close to me…! Ooh it's so thrilling! What'll I do if he starts putting the moves on me when we're together at night? Should I give in? Ooh – !! I guess I'll just let things happen as they do X3~

I have to get ready for bed now – I wonder if Sasori-sama will be with me again. I hope he is; It's unbelievable warm under the covers and I need someone to balance it out.

Oh, I think I hear him on the bed. I should get into my pajamas soon – can't keep him waiting!

Love,  
Hinata

-:-

_Dear Mental Journal,_

_I took her out for a walk today. It was pretty fun, actually. I should take my Deidara out on a walk sometime. When she's out of the way. Yes… I've fooled her into thinking that I actually _wanted_ her. Hah. As if I could ever want someone like _that_…Well, things have been going fairly well since I asked her out. She thinks so too, I believe. I feel that the potion I made her drink has been working fine. She's all over me. She's so attached to me, and so vulnerable too. But not all the way. I have to break her at her best, just to get some extra spice from it. _

_Deidara's been following us since we've been going out on dates, Hinata and I. He's concerned about the wench's safety, but he has nothing to worry about until… Oh, I don't know, next week? I could bump it to tomorrow night if I play my cards right. I don't think he knows, but I can never be sure. It hurts to see my love like that, all depressed and whatnot, but believe me, my Deidara, it'll all be for the best at in the end – when she's gone. It'll all be better…_

_Well, I suppose I'll mess with the girl tonight, see what she does. Maybe her poor heart will beat so fast it'll cause it to implode on itself or something… Ah, wishful thinking. _

_Oh, she's coming out of the bathroom now. I'll write to myself later._

_Sasori_

-:-

_Dear Mental Journal,_

_Sasori is a damn good actor._

_-Deidara_

-:-

"Hi, Hinata." Sasori wrapped an arm around her waist when she crawled into bed. "H-Hello S-Sasori-sama…" Hinata stammered, shyly turning away to avoid his gaze. "What's up? You're all red…" He tilted her head so that she was looking at him. She turned even darker when he smiled a little. "N-N-Nothing's wrong… I'm just… a little excited, is all." He smirked this time, and Hinata now knew that she had given away all the feelings she meant to keep to herself.

"_Excited_… Whatever for?" he asked, leaning against her. She moved to kiss him, but he decided to tease her a little and pulled back. "What about tonight is making you so excited?" He inquired, kissing the top of her head. "Nothing…" she muttered, trying to land her lips on his. "Ah, no lying, Hinata. I won't kiss you until you answer." He said, a childish firm in his voice. Hinata pouted, but gave in. "…I was just anticipating something tonight. Nothing big." She said. "Anticipating what?" Hinata blushed the darkest red on record, which really gave him the answer to his question.

"You're a naughty girl."

"C-Can I help it? All that talk about _going further_… what am I supposed to think?"

Sasori chuckled and kissed the side of her head. "Go to sleep. I'll see you in the morning." He murmured, laying her down to her pillow. "A-Alright… Good night, Sasori-sama." She said softly, scooting under the covers. "I love you." Sasori lay beside her, wrapping an arm around her waist. She was already asleep, and he just watched her until morning.

--

A few days have passed. Hinata knew that tonight was the night. It was the way he kept looking at her that gave it away. The way he held her, too. Gentle, loving, he kissed her sweetly a few times that day as well. It was when Hinata was already in her bed that things got started.

He simply walked in, closed the door and crawled on top of her. He kissed her once before removing his cloak and most of his jacket-like garments.

"T-Tonight…?"

"Yup. Tonight…"

Excitement welled inside her as he kissed her, each time a little rougher than the last. Clothes were taken off and thrown carelessly across the floor. Tangled limbs and connected lips were actions constantly performed. Soft moans and groans were heard, mostly from the girl. Lies and confessions were whispered in ears, and body heat was exchanged with every contact with skin.

Her night of passion was nothing but a lie.

-:-

… Excuse me while I change this to a rated M fic .;

So anyway, I put a poll up on my profile asking which of my stories you wanted to read after this one.

And I guess, if you haven't already noticed, Kisame's Corner is on Hiatus until… well, until I decide to get off my lazy ass and DO something. So yeah.

Hurdehurwhut.


	7. It's Far Too Late

_It started out as a feeling  
Which then grew into a hope.  
Which then turned into a quiet thought  
Which then turned into a quiet word.  
And then that word grew louder and louder  
Until it was a battle cry._

_I'll come back when you call me.  
No need to say goodbye…_

-:-

He wasn't there in the morning.

She looked around the room for him, but he wasn't there.

There was a note on the table beside her bed. It only had one word on it, but it hurt the most to hear, especially after a time like last night.

_Goodbye._

What was that supposed to mean? Where was he going? Was he coming back?

She crawled out of bed and cleaned up, deciding to ask around or look for Sasori. He was in the living room, reading. He glanced at her once before turning his attention back to the book. Hinata sat beside him, shyly playing with the end of her skirt. What was she supposed to say?

"U-Um… S-S-Sasori-sama–"

"What?"

His abrupt answer sounded rough and uncaring. She continued anyway. "…Er… Hi…" she greeted shyly. He looked her up and down before returning, in a clearly annoyed tone, a "Yeah. Hi." Hinata bit her lip, holding back tears. _…Why is he acting like this…?_ A somewhat odd thought hit her. It wasn't exactly… the usual thing you'd think of in this situation, but it certainly was possible.

…_Was last night not that good…!?_

Even if it was considerably… bad… last night, there was no reason for him to be this mean to her. It was her first time – how was she supposed to know what to do or how to react? Not to put the blame on Sasori, but still… it shouldn't matter if you actually _love_ the person…

It wasn't long until Hinata decided to quit talking to Sasori. It was clear that he wouldn't talk to her for a good hour or so. She stood up and walked slowly to the door, watching Sasori carefully to see if he reacted or not. Of course, he didn't, and she proceeded in leaving. Her heart started to hurt, and a few tears rolled down her cheeks. She kept walking until something stopped her.

"…Hinata?"

She didn't care who it was.

Just get her to a place where she can feel better again.

-:-

"…Konan – I think she's sad."

"…Oh, she's just crying like there's no tomorrow. _Maybe_ she's sad. We just don't know."

"…-sticks out tongue- You're so mean to me!"

"I love you too, Pein."

Hinata was wedged between the head vampire of the mansion and his wife. Pein and Konan. She was still crying about the whole "Sex With Sasori" thing. She couldn't figure it out. So, walking blindly in the middle of the hall, she bumped into the head vampire, who had brought her to his wife who was clearly wiser in a time like this.

"Hinata, honey, what's wrong?" Konan asked, wrapping an arm around her shoulders in a comforting manner. Hinata leaned on her and just cried. "…S-Sasori-sama's… n-not happy with me…anymore…" she sobbed. "Not happy with you? Why would he not be happy with you?" Konan asked. Hinata turned a dark red, glancing at Pein for a second. He took the hint and left the room, waiting outside the door. Konan got the hint too, turning a light pink at the fact. "…I see. Well, why would he be unhappy about that?" she asked. "…I don't know… I-I… M-Maybe it wasn't all that great or…" Konan chuckled lightly, making Hinata look at her questioningly.

"It can't have been that bad. And if you really loved each other, it wouldn't really matter." Konan said reassuringly.

"That's what I thought too… but maybe… since he's so mad… it really _was_ that bad…" Hinata moaned and cried even harder of both embarrassment and sadness.

"You don't give yourself credit – you two were so loud that I had to do Konan to block out the noise!" Pein called through the door. Hinata almost screamed, but Konan quickly calmed her down. "Pein! God, can you _not_ be yourself for one therapy session!?" she yelled at him. "Sorry, sorry!"

"…Hinata, what I think you should do is just talk to him. Maybe something's bothering him, maybe it's not you." Konan hugged her tightly. "Oh, my poor baby. I hope you feel better, alright? Just talk to the guy." She said in a sweet, motherly tone. Hinata felt a little better. She wiped her tears away and giggled a little, hugging her back. "Thank you, Konan-sama." She got up, patting her face to get it back to normal and smiled back at Konan. "You can talk to me anytime about anything, Hinata. Take care." Konan smiled softly at her. Hinata left the room.

Soon after she left, Pein walked back in the room. "Is she alright now?" he asked, concerned. Konan nodded a little. "I hope she is. She is such an innocent child – I hope Sasori isn't being mean to her on purpose." She stated softly. Pein nodded, sitting beside her and hugging her. "She's almost like a daughter to us, huh?" he smiled a little. "Yes… She is." Konan agreed.

If only hoping was enough.

-:-

The days went on, and Sasori continued to ignore her. When she tried talking to him, it seemed like he wasn't even listening. She wasn't getting through to him. She was starting to get depressed. She stayed in her room most of the time. She cleaned when she could, but quickly retreated to her room after a couple hours of work. It was bad for the mansion to suddenly get dirtier, but she could find no energy to keep going.

One night, Sasori suddenly burst into her room.

"Hinata. Now."

"…S… Sasori-sama?"

"Clothes? Take them all off."

"Sasori-sama, what are you…?"

"Ugh. Never mind. I'll get it off for you then."

"N—Wait, Sasori-sama!"

"Be quiet, Hinata! Just let me do this."

"…But…"

"Shh."

-:-

A day had passed, and Sasori wasn't even in the room. She had changed into different clothes and all, but she felt so… dirty. Every now and then tears would fall from her eyes. "What have I… done…?" she'd find herself asking to no one in particular. "What… did I… do…?" a sob escaped her lips. "Did I… do something wrong…?"

She stared at the ceiling. The answer was not written there, but she couldn't move. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't… she couldn't…

The door to her room opened, and footsteps, pain in each sharp thud of shoe against floor, were walking towards her. The person pulled a chair and sat at her bedside, his hand taking hers and holding it tightly. An aggravated sigh escaped his lips, and he pressed them against the back of her hand.

"…Hinata." He breathed. It came out warmer than usual, and that fact worried her. Who was this man… why was he so warm?

"What has he done to you…?" the pain in his voice worsened, and a small choke on a sob came from him. Hinata's hand gripped his as tight as it could in the weak state it was in. "It… It'll be alright…" She tried in an assuring voice. The man wasn't convinced. "No. He shouldn't have. I shouldn't have let him. I should've saved you when I could… I… This is all my fault…"

Hinata summoned all her strength to look at the man.

"…Oh. Deidara-sama… Hello…" she creaked, smiling a little. His face became more distraught, and he gripped her hand a little tighter.

"How've you been…? It's been forever…" she chuckled a little. "I'm… very sad right now, in truth, Hinata." He answered softly, breaking as much as she was. "Oh… why?" he gulped down a lump in his throat. "…Someone important to me… has been hurt. I want… to make it better. But… I can't." he pressed her hand to his forehead. "…I'm sorry to hear that, Deidara-sama… d-do you want to lie down with me, if it'll make you feel better…?" she asked. She made an effort to move, but couldn't. She blushed in embarrassment.

"I-I'm sorry… I can't seem to find the strength... to move over… hehe…" she said lightly, almost tearing Deidara's heart in two. It was heartbreaking to see her like this. "Here, I'll help you then." He carefully picked her up and scooted her over some, lying down next to her. He wrapped his arms around her thinning form and pressed her to him. She blushed, but enjoyed the company.

"How are you feeling, Hinata?" he whispered to her.

"I'm… I feel like I've caught quite a nasty cold, actually." She coughed a little, and he tightened his hug on her. "I feel a little light too… I don't think that's good either…" she added, wrapping a frail arm around him. "It's not." He agreed. He clutched the clothes on her back, pulling her up to his height; so that they were face to face.

"Hinata… you're dying."

"…Am I? Oh… that's not good, is it?"

"Terrible. Absolutely terrible."

--

They stayed in silence most of the time, and a couple times she fell asleep. He didn't move an inch. She seemed to enjoy his company, even in her sleep. He enjoyed hers too. He only wished that he could have her company for a little longer than he had.

On the last time she'd be awake, she started crying. He held her as tight as he could without breaking her. She began to speak.

"Deidara-sama…"

"Yes?"

"Please listen…"

"I always am."

"…I don't… want to die."She gripped his shirt. Tears streamed faster from her eyes. "I… I'm so attached… to the people of this place." She whispered. "In truth… I-I don't think… I love Sasori-sama as much as I do…" she trailed off. He stroked her hair. His lips pressed against her head. "…Deidara-sama… I think… I think I loved you… the whole time." She hugged him tightly.

Deidara cupped her face. "I've loved you… the whole time as well." He said. Hinata smiled. "I'm… I'm glad." She said. Her voice was trailing off. Before she was completely gone, he kissed her cheek softly. "Just a little bit longer. Can you stay up that long? Just a little bit?" he asked, his voice cracking. "Okay… Deidara-sama… Since I love you so much…" her eyes were closed; she was too tired to open them. "What is it…?"

He pressed his lips against hers softly. They stood still for a while. Time froze for them, and only them.

A sudden rush of memories ran through both their minds. The key to Hinata's memories had been unlocked.

D was Deidara.

She loved him.

He was her imaginary friend.

When he left… he became a vampire, hoping for a chance to be with her forever.

He loved her.

So much.

She took a potion that erased her memories.

They were apart for the longest ten years of their life.

It was chance that they were to meet again.

No, it was fate. Destiny.

It was meant to happen.

It _needed_ to happen.

Their sacrifices wouldn't be in vain in the end.

Or would they?

Could they really be together forever… when one of their forevers were ending?

It seems impossible…

It is.

-:-

Sasori was sitting in his room during all of this. Out of boredom, he took out the potion he fed to Hinata a month or so ago. He read the label, every word, until he got to the duration time: 2 days. After 48 hours, the potion would wear off and the person wouldn't love you anymore. They've been together for a _month_. That's 28 days after the potion.

If that was the case… what did that mean?

Did she… love him the whole month?

After two days, how did she feel?

She still loved him, even after the potion.

Sasori threw the bottle on the ground; it shattered into pieces. He got up and marched to the girl's room. The wench's room. The bitch's room. The… The only girl who loved him's room. The girl that didn't need the use of a potion to love him's room.

He slammed the door open.

She wasn't breathing.

The one who was holding her wasn't either.

He was doing worse than breathing.

He was crying.

Sobbing.

Being _human._

-:-

"Deidara…"

"Get out of here."

"No, you don't understand–"

"Get out."

"But I have to… She –"

"You've done _enough_, Sasori. Just… Just leave her alone."

"Deidara…"

"Sasori. What more do you want from her? It's far too late for an apology. It's far too late for regret. It's far too late… It's far too late."

"…"

-:-

_You'll come back when it's over  
No need to say goodbye.  
You'll come back when they call you  
No need to say goodbye…_

--

The Call – Regina Spektor

-:-

Yeah.

Uh huh.

Dead.

Hinata has died.


	8. First Tears and Guilt

Not the end.

Not yet.

-:-

Something unfamiliarly wet rolled down his cheek.

A tear.

He was crying.

-:- What They Remembered -:-

_Just moments before her death, Deidara and Hinata kissed. _

_It sparked the memories from their long forgotten past and spread through both of them. _

_Deidara was Hinata's childhood imaginary friend. But he was a little more than imaginary. He wanted to be with Hinata so much. He wanted to be real. So he visited an old witch in town. She saw him, even though he was imaginary. He explained his situation, and the old witch told him this:_

"_Become a vampire, my young friend. I will show you to a man I know who will turn you into such."_

_She told him the mysterious man's location, and Deidara left immediately. _

_When he arrived at the man's place, Deidara explained yet again his story. The man understood, but told him this:_

"_If you truly wish to become a vampire, everything in your previous life will be lost. All memories, all values – you will be an entirely new being. Are you okay with this?" _

_Deidara hesitated. He thought for a long time. He looked at himself as he was now; transparent, unreal. He ran his arm through the man's hand. He couldn't be with Hinata like this. He'd find her. _

"_Sir, please turn me into a vampire." _

-:-

They had buried her in the yard of the mansion. It rained hard that day. Everyone was gathered around her coffin. They all shed at least one tear.

Sasori and Deidara stood next to each other at the foot of the grave. The tears in Deidara's eyes wouldn't stop flowing. Sasori didn't understand. They'd only known each other for at least a few months. Half a year at the most. Foolishly, he decided to inquire about it.

"…You didn't know her for long. Why do you miss her so much?"

Deidara closed his eyes. "You wouldn't know. You wouldn't understand." He whispered. Sasori stared at him for a while. Then turned back to the grave of the object of his love's affection. He thought long and hard about the girl. She had fallen in love with him instead of Deidara. The first two days were the potion's doing. The rest of their month together was all her. It amazed him how a girl like that could ever possibly fall in love with him. It was the wrong guy, clearly. But… she was the only one who had ever loved him.

Now that he thought about it, he held a special kind of love for the girl as well. He had enjoyed a number of their days out walking, their one-sided dinners in the nearest town, and some of their particularly interesting conversations. It was almost hard for him to believe that it was all a plot to destroy her. It made him… oh, what was the word?

Guilty.

Sasori reached out to grab Deidara's hand. Everyone else had gone inside, since it had begun to rain considerably hard. Pouring. The clouds were crying as well. Deidara didn't show any protest to his hand, so he went farther. Sasori pulled him closer and into a hug. It surprised the other at first, but soon he just gave in, wrapping his arms around Sasori.

"Deidara… I'm sorry." He muttered. Deidara did nothing but hug tighter, the rain easing up a bit.

The rain never fully stopped, and Deidara took the time to whisper softly, "Tell me… Did she deserve it…?"

That was a question Sasori had no answer to.

-:-

_The man had kept true to his word._

_Deidara had forgotten everything. _

_But his story was spread throughout the black market like wildfire. _

_Many other imaginary beings wished to become real. _

_Many other imaginary beings travelled to become a vampire. _

_The first ten made a group and lived alone in a secluded place outside a village. _

_The rest wander, feeding at random in random villages. _

_The rest are unknown. _

_--_

_In truth, Deidara was to have the rightful place as leader of the first ten vampires. He didn't think himself fit for the job, so he chose the one who obviously was as leader: Pein. Things couldn't have been better. _

_They became friends – no, family. They all lived happily with each other, despite each others' flaws. Deidara felt a strong feeling of… emptiness, though. Like he was forgetting something. Someone. Someone important. _

_There was one girl, in the village he often fed in, who caught his eye. Her dark blue hair, cute and calming demeanor, and her vibe of serenity caught his eye. He kept watching her whenever he came by her village. She was so… captivating. _

_Then came the day that he had to feed off of her family. He went straight to what he thought was her room. He mistook his obsession with her for a want for her blood only. He sucked what he could from her, and was quite surprised that she was still alive. _

_He agreed to her little request._

-:-

He was lying on her bed.

Sprawled across, marveling at the emptiness.

Not even a week ago, she lay here, sick, broken.

They confessed their love here.

They remembered their love here.

He lost his love here.

--

"Deidara…"

"…Sasori… I'm so sad…"

"I know you are. I'm sorry."

"…It's been a long time since then. I want to feel better."

The position he was in on the bed was taunting him.

"…If… I can… I can make you feel better."

-:-

He truly was the worst.

Without knowing it, he had taken advantage of him.

Of his sadness.

He was in such pain – he was up for anything.

He wasn't… thinking.

How could he possibly think he would feel better like this?

Well, he could say now that he wouldn't.

He knew that he wasn't the one he loved.

Yet he went and did it anyway.

When he wakes up, will he be happy? Or even worse off than before?

It didn't matter.

All that did was the fact that he had done something wrong.

Very, very wrong.

-:-

_Deidara-sama,_

_How are you? _

_I'm doing fine, and I hope you are too. _

_I'm sorry that I dated Sasori-sama, even though I loved you the most. _

_You were my best friend, and I loved you like that too. _

_I mean, Sasori was a good friend and all, but… you were different. _

_I felt happy when you were around, and I got the sense that you were happy when I was around. _

_I'm sorry to have left early. I know that you can't. But I don't think I could have helped it, even if I tried. I was hurting so much… and people leave when things start to hurt too much. I'm sorry. _

_I only wish that I could have spent more time with you before I went away. Then my life would have been perfect. _

_I have something I want to ask you, however. _

_Did we really love each other for that long?_

_I like to think that we did, and it's very hard to believe. _

_But… are you really… Oh, it's a little embarrassing to say… But…_

_Are you really… my Deidara-kun? _

_There was so much that I wanted to say… and I regret that I can't. _

_I think I have to go for good now… _

_Words cannot possibly reflect the way I feel about you. And three words are the best I have._

_I love you. So much. _

_Well, more like five words, but you get it, don't you? _

_Goodbye. And again, I love you. _

_Hinata_

-:-

-A mental unsent letter –

-:-

Kinda short – but I wanted to get something up before Thanksgiving.

There's more, don't worry, haha.

Thanks for all the reviews! Gosh, almost fifty… that's a big number. I'm thankful for that :)

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

(And sorry to have made you guys so sad last chapter D: )


	9. 100 Years Later

I found the idea of Hinata jumping out of her grave and saying "LAWL JK" funny.

That is all.

-:-

_100 years later_

Sasori and Deidara's relationship didn't grow. It didn't… lessen either. Where they left off after Hinata's death is where they stayed. Sasori was someone to love, and Deidara was someone he loved. It wasn't happy, but it wasn't sad. That seemed to be all that mattered.

-:-

Behind this story of vampire love and hate lies one of only humans. The story is different from this one, however, the plots cross each other.

The main character here is the sister of the main character there.

His name is Neji Hyuga. He was Hinata Hyuga's brother.

He's lived in the village of Suna since he escaped the vampire attack on his family. They saved him before he died. He knew they had his sister. It was heart wrenching to have lost everything, but he moved on. He lived, and he fell in love. He got married, and had a daughter. She had dark blue hair and clear eyes…

He named her Hinata.

-:-

In the past century, Konoha was able to get back on its feet. The new and gracious leader had allowed vampires to mingle with the humans in the country, providing that they control their bloodthirsty urges. Many thought that it was outrageous, and the vampires thought it was unfair that they had to give up what made them vampires in the first place. But…

The Akatsuki thought it was fine.

The vampires against this idea were just ignorant of the benefits for both sides. Really, they just had to avoid killing innocent people. The criminals, however, were to be dealt with accordingly. The people of the town would be safe, and the people of the damned would be gone. If only people would give things a chance…

They were allowed to live in town. However, only a set amount of vampires could live in certain villages at a time. The Akatsuki were forced to split up. Not many words were exchanged; they knew exactly what they would have said.

-

"_I'll see you guys around." _

_They were all dressed in suits, each of them carrying suitcases carrying a few of their belongings. When you've lived as long as they have, you find that you don't need much to live. _

_They all exchanged short goodbyes, sparing one last glance at the building they called home. _

"_Heh. Looks like the show's over." Hidan smirked, putting his hat on and began walking away. The rest followed suit, mental confessions running through each other's minds. _

_Sasori and Deidara were the only ones walking in a pair._

-:-

A phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hinata! What're you doing today?"

"Um… Nothing much, why?"

"Well, me and the girls are going shopping today – wanna come?"

"Oh, um… Okay. Sure. When?"

"Today, if that's fine. We'll meet in front of JC's."

"Alright. See you there."

"Bye-Bye!"

"Bye."

-:-

A man walked into his friend's room.

"Hey, Deidara."

"Hm?"

"Let's go to the mall today."

"…Why?"

"I dunno. I feel like we should."

"Okay. Whatever you want."

"I think we need different clothes. Let's try JC's?"

"Alright."

"Thanks, Deidara."

"Hm…"

-:-

Hinata stepped out and locked the door. She walked to the mall, since she didn't have a car yet. The mall wasn't that far anyway, so it didn't matter.

The day was cold and musty, the sky a light gray. Traffic was bad, but it was moderately safe to walk. She wondered what the girls were going to buy this time. Perhaps she'd stop by the bookstore…

She stopped at a stoplight, just a block away from the mall. It was pretty busy, that road. She had no idea that one of the people in the cars would change her life forever.

-

"Hey, Deidara."

"Hm?"

"Are you thirsty?"

"No. Why?"

"No, not thirsty. _Thirsty_."

"…Oh."

"I am. It's bothering me to no end."

"I haven't felt thirsty for years, Sasori."

"Can we pull over? I need to just _bite_ something – someone."

"Don't get caught."

"I never do."

--

Hinata looked up at the trees, bare and cold because of winter. It was calming to see the stillness of it all. She shivered a little, hugging her jacket closer to her. She closed her eyes for a few minutes, and suddenly…

She was grabbed and pulled into an alleyway.

Someone was holding her – pinning her to the wall.

-

Sasori took special care of this one, since it was a woman.

"It's quite cold out, isn't it?" he said, a calming look in his eyes. He looked at the girl; she was looking down. He moved to brush the hair away from her face and get her to look up at him. It pissed him off how she didn't seem scared.

"What… What do you want…?" her soft voice asked as she was forced to look at him. Sasori's eyes widened. Dark blue hair… clear eyes… pale skin, soft lips, warm face…

"Hinata…" he breathed.

"Y-Yes?" She answered.

Sasori stared at her for a few more seconds before drawing back.

"Nothing." He said, dragging her out of the alley. He pushed her in the general direction of the mall, stepping into the car parked a few feet down. Hinata was confused, but continued on her way.

Sasori sat in the front seat and sighed.

"What happened to your drink?" Deidara asked.

"…I don't wanna anymore. Drive." Sasori breathed out again, a small order to distract him from his encounter.

"Oh wait. Stop for a sec."

Deidara stopped at the curb, an illegal move, but it was only for a second. "What?" he asked. Sasori leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the lips. "Okay. You can go." Deidara stared at him for a split-second before stomping on the gas pedal. They found a parking spot in record time, and was in the mall instantly.

-:-

"Where could she be?" A girl with blonde hair tied up in a ponytail wondered aloud.

"I wonder if she's alright." Another girl with pink hair asked.

"She'll be here in a minute. You know how slow she is." Another girl said. The rest nodded and agreed, laughing a little.

Hinata made it eventually, walking up to them panting.

"You'd never guess what just happened to me!" she said. "What?" the pinkette asked.

"I got attacked by a… by a vampire!" Hinata exclaimed only loud enough for her group of friends to hear. "No way! Are you alright?" She nodded. "He… He let me go. I think he knew my name…" Hinata stood upright and caught her breath.

"Do you want us to call the police on him?"

Hinata shook her head. "I'm fine…" She said, trailing off. She caught sight of a man with blonde hair a few stores down. She stared at him, taking note that he was a vampire. Pale skin, soft blue eyes… he seemed so familiar. Where had she seen him before?

She was pulled out of her thoughts when her friend called her name.

"Hinata? You alright?" She stared at him for a little longer before turning back to her friends. "Yeah, sorry about that. Are we going now?"

Her friends gave her another worried look before bursting into laughter and giggling fits. "Hinata, you're so silly! Let's go now – I saw this cute skirt on the way here!" They linked arms and dragged Hinata into the store. She stared at the blonde man a little longer until he glanced in her direction.

--

"Ah."

Deidara's eyes widened for a second. Sasori looked at him, following his gaze to the entrance to the store.

"What?" he asked. Deidara shook his head. "It's… nothing." They entered the store, going in the opposite direction of the person Deidara wanted to follow the most.

-:-

It was evening now, and most of the girls had headed home. Hinata was the only one left, walking aimlessly around the mall. She had fun today, and now she was tired. She was looking for the entrance to the mall from where she came from, but with her horrible sense of direction, she had a little trouble finding it. She could have sworn that she'd seen that Hot Topic about five times now.

Or… Maybe she was looking for someone. That blonde man. But there was no way that he'd still be here – men don't shop for a long time unless they're with their girlfriends or something. So what was she still doing here? It was nearly empty, except for the small masses of people travelling in groups to the food court for dinner.

By the time Hinata finally got back from mentally zoning out, she crashed into someone. She was about to fall backwards, but the person grabbed her arm before any of that.

"Oh… I'm terribly sorry… are you alright?"

Hinata's eyes widened.

Pale skin, soft blue eyes, blonde hair…

That unbearably familiar man.

--

Deidara stared at her as he helped her up.

It was… her.

It was the one woman he loved.

But… how was she here?

She had died long, long ago.

"Tell me, miss…" he began.

Hinata looked up at him from where she stood. She was just as captivated by him as he was of her. "What is your name…?"

It took her a minute to register his question in her head. When it did, she spoke softly, still distracted by him.

"Hinata… Hinata Hyuga."

-:-

I mentioned the poll on my profile right?

Well, I haven't looked to see if it worked.

(Knowing me and my luck it probably didn't)

But if it is up there, please take a look!

It decides what I'm going to do after this story.

(Erm… yeah)

[And thanks for the over 50 reviews - again, it's a big number]

And I know that a kid can't last for 100 years, but bear with me, alright? D:

Okay. See ya later.


	10. So Much Like Her

It's complicating, this story.

D:

-:-

Sasori watched as the two stared at each other.

"Hinata… Hinata Hyuga."

His eyes narrowed, almost glaring at her.

The girl was _dead_, yet she was _still_ trying to steal his love away?

Oh the _bitch_.

But that was something he'd come to love about her.

-:-

Deidara and Hinata stared at each other for the longest time until the security of the mall told them to leave. Even when they walked separate ways they stared at each other. Sasori and Deidara got in their car and drove off some distance away. They didn't speak. Deidara's thoughts were racing.

She looks just like her.

She acts just like her.

She smells just like her.

She…

She…

He had to see her again.

The car swerved around, earning a few angry honks from the other cars. Sasori glanced at Deidara, slightly alarmed.

"She shouldn't be walking alone at night." Deidara muttered as an excuse. Sasori sighed in annoyance, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms. "You're stupid." He said.

It wasn't long until they caught up with Hinata on the street. Deidara noticed that a man was following her. He had no choice now.

The car screeched to a halt beside Hinata on the sidewalk. She squeaked and stepped back a few. Deidara got out of the car, slowly, so as to not scare her more than he already did.

"Hinata! I've been looking for you!" he stepped up to her and pulled her into a hug. Hinata stayed frozen, scared out of her mind. "There's a guy following you. Play along; I'll take you home in my car." He murmured in her ear. His breath was cold against her skin. She nodded.

"Come on, let's go home." He said, escorting her into the car.

Sasori wasn't there. Deidara didn't pay any mind; he'd find him sooner or later. He had forever to search.

Hinata sat in the passenger's seat, putting on her seatbelt. The silence was painfully awkward. She stared out the window; at his reflection. He was so… handsome. Like someone out of a movie. Were all vampires like that?

"…live."

She snapped her head toward him, almost taken aback by the sudden real-life comparison to the handsome reflection. "E-Excuse me?" she squeaked out. He chuckled softly. "Where do you live, Hinata?" he repeated softly.

Hinata looked around to see what street they were on. They were practically there. "I… H-How did you know…?" they saw the nameplate that read 'Hyuga' on one of the gates. She lived on the old property of the first Hyugas from roughly a century ago. Deidara glanced down the walkway to the house, remembering that first time… when the old Hinata was heartbroken at the emptiness of it all. "It was a wild guess." He said in a low tone. Hinata nodded slightly, stepping out of the car.

She didn't close the door.

He didn't either.

They stared once again at each other.

She gripped the handle of her bag. She was so… so mesmerized by him. He was just as captivated, she noticed. He was the first one to break their gaze. He turned off the car.

"When can I see you again…?" he asked, barely above a whisper. Hinata was taken off guard by this. Such a sudden request; and they only met a few hours ago.

"Whenever you want… I-I'll be here." She answered awkwardly. He grunted once, stomping on the gas pedal. The door closed as he moved forward, bringing a gust of wind from behind him. Hinata stared after the car until it disappeared out of sight, which wasn't too long after he left. She walked back into her house, completely shaken up by her day.

--

Sasori was standing in an alley, someone pinned against the wall under his arm.

"God, my throat's been itching for a good drink…"

The man scrambled under his effortless tight grip.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm a man's man too. This'll be real quick, okay? – heart-"

There was a loud scream, and then an abrupt silence following a sharp crack of the neck.

Deidara's car pulled up next to the alley. Wordlessly, Sasori walked in, a trail of blood leaking down his chin. They stayed silent the rest of the trip home.

-:-

He sat at the edge of the bed, staring at the closet filled with secrets and trinkets from that time so long ago. It held his cloak. His belongings from the mansion. The clothes he wore on their first and only date at the park. The memories of her days at the mansion.

_I think I loved you the whole time, Deidara-sama…_

When he really thought about it, it was no surprise that her last few months alive would be spent around vampires. It only made sense.

But the causes were so… human. She died… of a broken heart.

If only he could do the same.

--

Sasori watched as Deidara sat in front of the 'forbidden closet'. He leaned against the doorframe, studying his hunched over form and troubled expression. He was contemplating on his decision on when his Deidara chose the girl over him. Would he let him go? Or would he be selfish and keep him for himself? They've been together for over a century – why should they end it now because of some girl who looks like…

Deidara stood up, storming towards the door. Sasori moved to the side, surprised by his actions. He stared after him as he grabbed his keys and headed for the door.

"Where… Where are you going?" Sasori asked, following him. Deidara didn't respond at first, but stopped at the front steps of the porch. "I have… to go somewhere." He said vaguely. Sasori shook his head. "Are you going to go see that girl? Deidara, think, it's midnight – she has school or whatever tomorrow, she's sleeping! You can see her any other time. Why now?" he was now standing beside him outside. Deidara didn't look at him.

"She's… calling me."

Sasori stared at him with an angry look. "She's calling you." He repeated, annoyed. Deidara started walking towards the car. Sasori followed him and blocked the door. "You're being stupid. The Hinata you saw today is asleep, and the one you want to see is –" Deidara cut him off, suddenly angry. "Who are you to tell me what to do?" He glared at him, and Sasori stepped back in surprise.

"I'm done doing what you want me to do. I need to think for myself sometimes too, y'know?" Deidara's glare loosened up to a stare, and he stepped closer. "You've taken the one I loved. You've broken her heart, and she died. Yet you still came back to see if there was any more that you could get from her. I've been hurting all this time, and when comfort walks down the street, you want to get rid of that too." He stopped to gather his thoughts.

"Just… Just let me go."

Sasori stayed silent. He stepped away from the car and let Deidara get in. _I guess…_ he began in his thoughts,_ if I love him, I should let him go._

He watched as the car sped off into the night. He watched the smoke rise up from the tracks left on the road, and at that moment he decided to wait for him. Right at that exact spot.

-:-

Hinata looked at the clock for the fifth time that minute. She couldn't sleep. It was past midnight, but she wasn't drowsy in the least bit. She was thinking of that man from earlier today. Ugh… Familiar was a word that got old. She knew him. He knew her. But how? She hadn't seen him ever in her entire life! Yet they stared at each other for the longest time. They seemed to be… linked together. But… But _how_?

She turned a little in bed, facing the wall. She closed her eyes tightly, drawing the covers over even tighter. It got cold all of a sudden. As if a window had opened…

Hinata glanced at the window. The curtains were flowing in the breeze that came through the open window. It wasn't the wind that caused a chill to crawl down her back – it was the fact that she had been in her bed for the whole time. And she could swear to _god_ that she kept that window closed – and locked.

It was then that she felt the sudden pressure of a hand on her arm. Her head swerved around to see who it was, but didn't scream when she found out.

The two stared at each other again.

_Those soft blue eyes…  
Those pale, clear eyes…_

When they realized their position, she blushed and he cleared his throat softly. "Uh… Don't… scream?" the other, colder man said quietly. Hinata scooted away from him, her back to the wall. "I-I won't." she sighed helplessly, caught up in his soft gaze. It was the way he looked at her… with such gentle intensity that was too mesmerizing to ignore.

"Hinata... san. I know your name very well. Do you know mine?" the man sat up, and so did she. Hinata shook her head, still pressing herself against the wall. "I'd… I'd like to know your name." she stated awkwardly, relaxing a little.

"My name… it's Deidara."

_My name… it's Deidara…_

That phrase… she had heard it before. The name… she knew the name. So unique, yet it didn't strike her as such.

"Deidara…san." The name played on her lips. "Deidara-san." She tried again, smiling a little. He smiled a bit too. "Deidara-san… Deidara-san!" She had no idea why it made her so happy to say his name. She said it so many times; it made her giggle.

"Deidara-sama!" She blurted out. Her hand covered her mouth. Deidara stared at her, wide eyed. He hadn't been called that in a long time.

They began staring at each other again. What was it about them that mesmerized each other so much? The familiarity? The beauty of each one?

"I-I'm sorry… I… I don't know where that came from…" Hinata brushed some hair away from her face, a troubled expression on her features. Deidara reached out, cupping the side of her head. He pulled her into a hug, stroking her hair and pressing his face to her ear. "You look so much like her." He murmured, his arms moving around her waist. "You feel so much like her. You smell so much like her."

Hinata stayed still for a second, chilled at the sudden coldness. Then, slowly, she reached around him, resting comfortably in his arms. "Who… Who are you talking about?" She asked softly. Their position felt so natural. So right.

Deidara let her go, and she scrambled to do the same. "The one I loved… so long ago." He stopped, looking for her reaction. She wanted him to continue.

So he began the tale of his wretched, cold life.

-:-

The early morning was greeted with tears.

Hinata had sat through the whole story, hanging onto every word he spoke. He was so expressive for a vampire. At the times when he mentioned the other Hinata Hyuga, he was the happiest man in the world. When he mentioned the one called Sasori, he held a thoughtful look, and later on in the story, an almost angered expression. And at the end, he was the saddest she's ever seen.

Deidara reached over and wiped her tears away. She hugged him, and he hugged back. "Deidara-san… I'm so sorry. You must hurt very much right now…" she sobbed. Deidara shook his head. "It… It doesn't matter now. What's done is done." He pulled away, turning so his legs were over the edge of the bed. His back was facing her.

"Maybe I'm being punished." He muttered just loud enough for her to hear. Hinata gave him a confused look, crawling beside him. "Why?" she asked curiously, wiping the last of her previously shed tears away. Deidara sighed once, then looked her over again. "I'm sorry I touched you so much – I know we just met and all –" Hinata cut him off. "That doesn't answer anything. Why do you think you're being punished?" she asked sternly. Deidara stared at the floor.

"Hinata-san… You look… You look so much like her… Everything about you is just…" His fists clenched. "I… I can't have you. It was torture losing her once – and now I can see her every day, and I can't touch her. I can't hug her, kiss her…" his fists loosened and ran through his hair. Hinata lowered his arm so she could see his face. "Deidara-san…" She barely knew him, yet she felt so sad when he was in this much pain. She felt that she had to make him smile again.

"You can… do all those things… if you want."

Deidara stared at her again. This time, though, it was different. He held a kind of want for her in his eyes. He had wanted her to say that – to grant him permission to touch her like that. Hinata reached for his hand, holding it tightly. "No one should have to… feel that bad for so long. If there's anything I can do to help you, I will do it." She said softly, stroking the top of his hand with her thumb. "Thank… you…" They leaned toward each other, slowly, since they were still experimenting. Their lips were inches apart, and it took Deidara all he had to stop himself from taking her all the way. Closer… closer…

"_Stop!_"

The door slammed open, and Neji Hyuga, Hinata's father stormed into the room.

-:-

I'm aiming to finish this before Christmas.

I'm going to Canada.

…

Yeah.

Sorry about the constant mention about how she looked like the old Hinata -.-


	11. Reflection

Hrm…

Beethoven Virus (Korean Drama) For The Win.

…

-:-

_Deidara stared at her again. This time, though, it was different. He held a kind of want for her in his eyes. He had wanted her to say that – to grant him permission to touch her like that. Hinata reached for his hand, holding it tightly. "No one should have to… feel that bad for so long. If there's anything I can do to help you, I will do it." She said softly, stroking the top of his hand with her thumb. "Thank… you…" They leaned toward each other, slowly, since they were still experimenting. Their lips were inches apart, and it took Deidara all he had to stop himself from taking her all the way. Closer… closer…_

"_Stop!__"_

_The door slammed open, and Neji Hyuga, Hinata's father stormed into the room._

Hinata and Deidara jumped a little, letting go of each other and scooting away. Neji stared at the two of them, glaring almost. "Hinata, who's this?" he asked. His tone was unpleasant. Hinata tilted her head away from his gaze to the floor. "A-A friend…" She said. Neji glanced at Deidara for half a second, then back at Hinata. "What is he doing in your room?" Hinata stayed silent. "Moreover, how did he get in here?" There was no response, and Neji walked over to where they sat. Deidara stood up, putting a hand on Neji's shoulder.

"Sir, Mr. Hyuga. My apologies for this situation. My name is Deidara –"

"You be quiet. Hinata, did he do anything to you?" Neji asked, worried. He pressed a hand against her face, her head, her shoulders, to see if she was okay. "I-I'm fine, Dad. Deidara-san's a good person; he wouldn't hurt me." Neji glanced at Deidara again, taking note of his distinct features. He leaned closer to Hinata, whispering in her ear, "Is he a vampire?" she nodded, and Neji took in a sharp breath of surprise. He cleared his throat, standing straight and turning to Deidara.

"Ahem, Deidara, was it?" he asked, anger in his tone. Deidara nodded, biting his lip. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave. And please, do not return in the near future." Deidara nodded again. "My… My apologies, Mr. Hyuga. I'll be sure it never happens again." The three stood there, swimming in the silent tension.

"I-I'll escort him to the door." Hinata quickly stood up, grabbed Deidara's arm and walked out of the room. "H-Hey…" Neji made a motion to stop them, but they were already walking down the hall.

"Hinata-san… Hinata-san, was that really okay?" Deidara asked, stepping out the front door. "I-It's okay. Dad's just overprotective is all." Hinata glanced back down the hall to see if anyone was watching. "Heh. Really…" Deidara laughed softly. Hinata smiled at him, marveling at his overwhelming look of relief. She pulled him by the scarf and kissed his cheek. "We can't get caught next time, okay?" she whispered, giggling a bit at his dumbfounded expression. "H-H-Hinata-san-"

"Deidara-san. I want to know everything. What are you thinking? What are you feeling? What do you want to do? What… What did we have… before? I want to know it all." Hinata said, smoothing out his scarf and patting it. Deidara's eyes were wide with surprise. "Please. Come back anytime." He bit his lip, deciding on his next action.

"Hinata-san."

He brushed some of her hair aside and kissed her forehead. "S… Sleep well." He murmured before backing away and down the walkway. Hinata blushed darkly, watching him until Neji called her back to her room.

-:-

The car finally drove up the road. Sasori hadn't moved an inch. It wasn't until Deidara stepped out of the car that Sasori walked. He stomped in front of Deidara and kissed him as hard as he could. He led him back into the house.

Deidara shoved him away.

"Sasori… What are you doing?" he wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve. Sasori took off Deidara's jacket and scarf. "I love you, Deidara. You know that, don't you?" he pushed him down to the couch, straddling him and removing his sweater. Deidara tried getting him off, but to no avail. "I love you to _death_. Do you love me, my Deidara?" He kissed him again. He kissed him over and over again. Deidara turned and pinned him down.

"Why are you doing this, Sasori?" he asked, annoyed.

"I'm angry with you, my Deidara." Sasori responded, still trying to get Deidara's clothes off. "Why?"

Sasori gave up on his vest, letting his arms drop down to the floor. "You don't love me." He said softly. "Sasori, I never loved you that way. You don't have to get angry about anything." Deidara sighed, getting off of him. Sasori remained on the floor. "Then how do you explain all those things we've done? In bed? Some other place in the house where we've kissed or hugged or whatever? How can you say that you don't love me when we've made it almost ten times in each doable spot in the house?" He sat up and sprang to his feet. He walked over to Deidara, who was hanging his tossed clothes on the coat hanger.

"How can you not love me when I've allowed you to fuck me so many times?" he was so blunt about it.

Deidara paused about it. "All those times… All those times, you've forced me into it." He said softly. Sasori scoffed. "Sure, I did. But admit it, you enjoyed it. Every second." They were silent for a while. "You've found your Hinata again. You're happy, aren't you? What about me? What do I have when you leave me for her?" Sasori felt something roll down his cheek. A tear. A hundred year old tear. Deidara noticed it and wiped it away quickly.

"Don't cry, Sasori. It makes you look human." Sasori gritted his teeth. More tears fell from his eyes. "How can I stop?" he furiously wiped his eyes. "I won't stop trying to fuck you if you don't tell me what I gain when you end up with Hinata." He said, grabbing Deidara's arm. He pulled him into a roughly passionate kiss, pressing as hard as he could. He was pushed back. "Stop this, Sasori." He said, still holding that calm. Sasori kept trying. "Are you thinking!? I'll ask again – what will I get when you go to her!? That _whore!_" He pounded on Deidara's chest.

Deidara held Sasori's arms still. Sasori didn't look up at him or tell him to stop. He just stood there. "Are… Are you done…?" Deidara asked. Sasori nodded, leaning on Deidara for support. "I'm sorry I caused you so much trouble." Deidara said, letting go of Sasori's wrists and moving to rest on his shoulders. Sasori backed away a little. "I'm going to my room." He said bitterly, walking away and down the hall. Deidara sighed, busying himself with random chores around the house.

And it was when he was cleaning that he was reminded of Hinata.

-:-

Deidara went to Hinata's house the following night. He parked his car a few blocks down and entered through the window, which Hinata left open. When he arrived, he was slightly disappointed that she wasn't wearing the same, cough, skimpy pajamas she wore the night before. This time she was dressed in jeans and a slightly formal dress shirt. It gave no justice to her womanly curves that he was just now noticing on her.

"Deidara-san!" she greeted in a whisper, walking up to him. He smiled a little at her, walking over to sit on her bed. "Why so dressed up today?" he asked. She sat beside him, holding his hand. "I dunno. I guess I was thinking of sneaking out, but I don't want to cause you too much trouble, so… yeah." she studied his hand, running her fingers over his palm and fingers. She tried warming it up a little as well. He watched her fascination for a little, thinking back to when he first met Hinata in this vampire version of himself.

"_I have a proposal for you." He began, closing his eyes and gathering his thoughts. Hinata nodded. "In return for your life, you become our maid. You'll clean, cook, and take care of any tasks we ask of you. And also, you'll have this room as your own. We here won't enter without your permission, nor will we change anything while you're busy tending to the mansion." Hinata thought about it for a minute or so, thinking that being alive was a little better than being torn apart limb from limb by a vampire. So she nodded in agreement, and took the man's hand when he extended it to her. It was ice cold, if not colder._

_Hinata, feeling concerned for the incredibly cold man, grasped both hands over his. He looked confused, but curiosity kept him still. She rubbed his hands and breathed on them, waiting for them to warm up. He soon realized what she was doing and chuckled a little. Gently, he pulled his hand away. "You can do that for a hundred years and they'll still be as cold as this." He said. Hinata looked worried for a moment, but returned to normal when she calmed herself._

"Deidara-san?"

Deidara looked at her, suddenly pulled out of his thoughts. "Y-Yes?" he replied awkwardly. "Are you alright?" She gave him a concerned look, tilting her head to the side. "Oh…" He looked down at their hands. She was gripping his hands tightly, with worry. "I'm… I was just thinking." He said, a thoughtful look on his face. Hinata leaned closer, paying close attention to him. "What about…?" she inquired. He shook his head. "It's nothing."

They sat in silence for a while, until Deidara decided to end it. "What are we doing tonight, Hinata?" he asked. "Um… I don't know. What do you feel like doing?" Hinata leaned back a little, propping herself up on her elbows. Deidara thought a moment, looking her up and down. He shook his head furiously at one idea. Hinata looked at him curiously.

"Maybe… we should… pick up from where we left off yesterday…?"

Hinata blushed a dark red, sitting back up. She looked away from him in embarrassment. "I-I mean, only if you want to. It was just a suggestion." Deidara reassured. "I mean, I thought it was awfully rude to have been interrupted last time…" he trailed off, giving up on the idea completely. Hinata thought for a while, then looked up at him. "A-Are you sure that… you want to…?" she asked shyly. Deidara slowly wrapped an arm around her. "…Yes."

Deidara leaned towards her slowly, in case he still scared her to some degree. She relaxed a little in his arms, closing her eyes and puckering her lips a bit. He chuckled softly, then kissed her as gently as he could. His eyes slowly closed as well, caressing her lips with his until she pushed him away for air. She panted softly, a hand over her heart to calm it down. She was bright red and avoiding all eye contact with him.

"D-D-Deidara-san…" she began, not really knowing what she was about to say. Deidara leaned his head on hers and sighed, smiling. "Hinata-san… thank you." He whispered, kissing her head. She blushed even darker, shutting her eyes tightly. "I-I-It's n-nothing." She managed.

The clock struck two.

Deidara sat up, brushing the hair away from her face. He smiled. He left. Hinata stared after him, listening to the car and the sound of it driving away.

She was in love.

--

Hinata couldn't sleep for the rest of the night. She danced around her room until she got tired, sitting in front of the mirror. She got incredibly drunk on happiness. She figured that that was the explanation for her reflection talking to her.

"_Hello? Hinata-san?"_

Hinata nodded, giggling a bit.

"_Hi. I'm the old Hinata. How are you?"_

"I'm in love with Deidara-san." Hinata smiled. So did her reflection.

"_That's good. Where did he go?"_

"I dunno. Home I guess. I hope he comes back tomorrow…" Hinata giggled to herself.

"_Oh. Okay. It's totally fine to fall in love with him. He wouldn't do anything to hurt you."_

"I know he wouldn't…" Hinata sighed wistfully, dreamily.

"_How is… Neji doing?_"

"Neji? You mean Dad? He's overprotective as always. But I love him anyway." Hinata stretched and yawned.

"_Have you met Sasori yet?"_

"Nope…" She began to fall asleep, laying down on the ground.

"_-giggle- Falling asleep now, huh?"_

"Yeah… I guess so…" Hinata closed her eyes.

"_I love Deidara too…"_

--

Many nights passed, and each one Deidara was there. He eventually asked Hinata out one day, despite the sulking vampire back at his house. They were going out to dinner, and then walking it off at the park. Traditionally, Deidara picked Hinata up at her house. In secret, of course.

"Are you cold? They do say it's going to snow tonight." Deidara asked, wrapping his scarf around her. She giggled, wrapping the scarf around him as well. They kissed briefly. "I'm fine. It's winter every day with you around." She leaned on him, smiling. "Oh. Erm… Sorry." Deidara said awkwardly. "I meant that in a good way." Hinata playfully hit him on the chest, leading him to the car by pulling on his scarf.

"The sky is clear today, huh?" Hinata commented, leaning her head out the window a bit to see the stars. "Don't do that; you might lose your head." Deidara tugged her back into the safety of the car. She leaned on him instead, and he kissed her head. "You like the cold, Hinata?" he asked. "Only when it's you." A blush, a giggle, and he chuckled softly.

They made it to the restaurant, eating and talking idly about silly little things. They enjoyed themselves very much. They did walk in the park, enjoying the silence and each other's company. He returned her before dawn, not leaving a single hint of their night out.

"Sorry to have kept you out so late. You can't get much sleep like this." Deidara apologized softly, kissing her head. "It was totally my idea. I'm fine. I'll see you tomorrow, right?" Hinata leaned up to kiss him fully on the lips. "Of course. Good bye, Hinata-san." He left, and Hinata fell asleep.

-:-

A knocking on a door.

Silence.

More knocking.

"Go away."

"You can't expect to stay in there forever."

"We have forever. Why don't you want to spend it with me?"

"I've found someone else to spend it with."

"Hah. She won't last a fraction of forever."

"I'll find a way… I can just…"

"She won't accept to it."

"There's still a chance. I can try biting her and –"

"Stop that."

More silence.

Retreating footsteps.

The night goes on.

-:-

Erm…

Hehe.

Uh…

Hi.


	12. Different

Oh Canada…

-:-

Hinata yawned loudly, leaning against the windowsill, waiting for Deidara to stop by. She closed her eyes for a little bit, not noticing the sound of her window being opened.

"Sleepy, are we?"

She jumped a bit, almost tipping herself over. He caught her, chuckling softly. "Sorry to scare you. Are you alright?" he pulled her into a hug and kissed her head. "What are we doing tonight?" he sat her down on the bed. "I don't know. I just like having you around." She kept her arms around him even when he stayed standing. "I like being around you too." He kissed her head and they shared a comfortable silence.

"Deidara-san…" Hinata started after a moment of thought. "Hm?" by now he was absently stroking her hair, his eyes closed. "W… Would you rather I call you… 'Deidara-sama'?" Deidara stayed silent for a while. "I wouldn't mind it, but you may call me whatever you like." He said, just above a whisper. "Does it hurt to think about her?" Hinata asked curiously. "If it did, I wouldn't be here with you right now." More silence.

Suddenly, a knock at the door.

"Hinata? Can I come in?" it was Neji.

Hinata and Deidara immediately broke apart. Deidara headed for the window and Hinata scrambled to get back into her bed. The door was opening, and Deidara was just opening the window. Neji entered the room.

"Are you alright? I thought I heard something up here." Neji walked over and sat next to Hinata on her bed. She nodded. "I'm fine. I think you're just hearing things." Hinata risked a glance at the window. He was gone. Disappointment fell upon her. "I'm kinda sleepy, Dad. Can I go to bed?" she asked softly. Neji nodded, kissing her cheek as a good-night. "Good night, Hinata." He said, standing up. "G'night, Dad." Hinata returned his small smile and snuggled down into her sheets. She couldn't believe her father scared away her date for the night.

"Is he gone?" a low husky murmur asked, almost scaring her. The quiet answered the voice's question, and cold strong arms wrapped around her. Hinata sighed in relief, putting a hand on the arm. "Deidara-san…" Deidara snuggled closer to her, holding her hand.

"Hey, I was thinking…" he started in a low murmur. "You should come over to my house sometime. Soon." Hinata smiled. "Uh huh. Anytime." He kissed the side of her head. "I need to show you a few things." Hinata nodded lazily, feeling sleepy. She yawned. He chuckled. "Sleep. I've been keeping you up too much." He whispered. She was already asleep, and they stayed like that for the rest of the night.

--

"You're taking her to our _house?_" Sasori asked, angry and annoyed. Deidara nodded. "What the hell's _wrong_ with you?" they were discussing it over a useless cup of hot chocolate and Hershey bars. Deidara ate them, though.

"Come on, why can't she?" Deidara asked. Sasori scoffed. "Give me a good reason why she should come here." He demanded, glaring. There was a pause, and then Deidara said, "Well, I think you want to see her as much as I wanted to find her." Sasori didn't deny this, even though it hurt his pride. The statement was too true to be false in his eyes.

"Does that mean… you're fine with it?" Deidara asked, hopefully. "Five minutes. That's all I'm giving her." Sasori sulked, folding his arms over his chest. "You're the best, Sasori." Deidara teased, grinning. "Hmph."

-:-

Hinata giggled, clinging to Deidara tightly as they drove down the driveway.

"Now, Hinata, this visit is very important to me. Please take this as seriously as you can." Deidara chuckled, kissing her head. "I'm partly serious about that, though. This _is_ important." Hinata nodded, grinning.

They walked into the house. Sasori was nowhere to be seen. "Strange… I thought he'd be prowling in the living room somewhere." Deidara muttered to himself, offering Hinata a seat on the couch. He went around a little to look for Sasori.

"'Sori? Where are you, man? Hinata-san's here." He called down the hall. There was a mumbling noise and then the door to his room opened. "Yeah, yeah." he grumbled, scratching the back of his head. They headed to the living room and sat down. Hinata smiled at him. He grimaced.

"Hi. My name's Hinata Hyuga! Nice to meet you!" Hinata extended her hand. He didn't respond. "Sasori, quit sulking. Come on." Deidara scolded lightly. Sasori sighed, shaking Hinata's hand once. Hinata studied him for a little, coming to a small realization. "H-Hey! Wait a minute, you were that one vampire who…" she trailed off. Sasori took a good look at Hinata as well, his eyes widening a bit. "Oh yeah. I should've taken care of you when I had the chance." He glared at her to make it seem that he was angry, but in truth, he was happy to see her.

Hinata shrunk down in the seat. "Sasori." Deidara said his name sternly. Another scoff.

"D-Deidara-san… can I use your bathroom?" Hinata asked softly. "Of course you can. It's over there down the hall." She stood up and left the two alone.

The second the door closed, Sasori started moving towards Deidara. "You are such a brat, huh?" He crawled on top of him and kissed him fully on the lips. Deidara pushed him off. "Stop that. Now." He sighed, keeping Sasori at arm's length. "_You_ stop that! Gosh, just let me kiss you for a little while she's gone…" he leaned down to kiss Deidara again, but was pushed away.

"Sasori. Why are you doing this?" Sasori ignored him, looking up to find Hinata coming back.

"Oh come _on_, Deidara. You know you love me." A forceful kiss and a poor girl falling witness to such an event. They didn't stop, and the kiss lasted for well over a minute. When he finally pulled away, Deidara turned to find Hinata staring in disbelief at him.

"Ah- Hinata-san… I-I can explain – I really can, just-"

"Go away, little girl. This man is all mine. He just likes you because you look the same." Sasori wrapped his arm around Deidara's neck and giving Hinata a haughty look. Tears rolled down her cheek and she took a step back. "Hinata-san… No… wait…" Deidara knew it was useless to try and talk. She was already devastated beyond recognition. She stared at him with pained eyes and Sasori chuckled a bit. He was hitting her where it hurt.

When she found the strength, Hinata began walking out the door. Deidara began to follow her, but Sasori pinned him to the couch. "You don't need her…" he murmured. The door slammed closed, and with his free hand Deidara reached out to the girl walking away.

"Yes I do."

-:-

She broke down just outside the gate to his house. It was late at night, and she settled herself under the light of a streetlamp. She cried and cried until it was reduced to soft sobbing and hiccups. Then she hugged herself to calm herself. She never really did; she sat there in the cold for nearly an hour.

Deidara shoved Sasori off of him and ran for the door. "I have to apologize." He muttered to himself. The voice of the man behind him made him stop.

"What will talking to her do? She won't listen." Sasori said casually to him from the couch. "Let her go. I mean, it's true, right? She just looks like her. That's what really brought you to her." He stared blankly at the wall in front of him. Deidara gripped the doorknob, making dents where his fingertips were. "Think about it, have you even said 'I love you' to her? Really all you guys do is sleep in the same bed and kiss. 'Friends with Benefits' is what I think they call you."

The doorknob fell and rolled on the floor.

"You're wrong. She's different. So different." Deidara threw the door open and stormed outside, running until he found her crumpled over on the street.

Hinata saw him, back to marveling at his familiar beauty. Then it hit her that he was coming for her and began running. After a few minutes she realized that he could catch up to her in a second, but her legs wouldn't stop or slow down.

"H-Hinata-san…!" he called from behind her. She made a sharp turn to her left, into the small park. Deidara didn't speed up to catch her. He was contemplating over giving her the space she probably needed or holding her close and apologizing heartily. He could do each in a second. He chose the latter.

"Hinata-san, wait!" He sped up and immediately caught up to her, wrapping his arms around her. She struggled weakly to get away from him and cried even more. He didn't know a human could produce so many tears at once. It hurt to know that he was the cause for it.

"Deidara-san, Leave me _alone!!_" she screamed, going limp in his arms. He held onto her tighter. "Hinata-san. Please, listen to me." He whispered softly. She calmed down a bit, breathing a little easier than before.

"…Is it true…?" she asked softly. "Do you only… love me because I look like… because I only look like the old Hinata…?" she whipped around in his arms and looked him in the eye. "Do you really love me, Deidara-san?" It broke his heart to see her like this. She pushed away from him, and he let her go. "Come back when you have an honest answer." She murmured, walking past him and towards the gates of the park. Deidara watched her until she was just outside the gates, gripping his hands tightly.

"Hinata-san… I love you." The wind carried the soft whisper to her, and she stopped.

"Hinata-san… I really, truly love you." He fully faced her, taking a step forward. "Please. Let me… Let me explain." He pleaded, his voice cracking. Hinata gripped the metal of the gate, using all the power she had not to turn around and fall into his arms. She didn't have that long to decide; he ran up to her and pulled her to him.

"Hinata-san… Hinata-san…" he whispered her name over and over again, begging her to stay. How could she refuse him? She loved him more than she should. He loved her… why did he love her? The words of that red-headed man, Sasori, vibrated in her head again.

_He just likes you because you look the same._

Hinata took a deep breath.

Deidara stopped reciting her name.

She walked out of his arms and down the street to her house.

He just watched.

-:-

Sitting in front of the mirror, she cried. Her window was locked, curtains closed.

_Hinata-san…_

The voice from her mirror spoke softly, as if the quietest of noises would break the girl.

_What Sasori-sama was doing… He… It's complicated._ She explained. Hinata shook her head.

_Sasori-sama loves Deidara-sama very much. He gets possessive of him a lot. He doesn't want anyone else to take him away. _

Hinata stopped sobbing to think. "I shouldn't love Deidara-san anyway… I mean, I was just making him feel better by pretending I was you for a while…"

_He said he loved you back at the park._

She stayed silent. "He was probably saying that to you. He only sees you through me anyway…"

_You said you loved him._

"I… I don't want to love him anymore."

_It's okay to love him, Hinata-san._

There was a sudden tapping on her window. Hinata stood up to see who it was. Deidara was standing there on a branch, gripping the sides of the window to keep balance. He looked torn up inside. Hurting. He tapped the window again, asking for entry. Hinata shook her head and closed the curtains again, crawling into bed.

--

Deidara sighed, pressing his head against the glass of the window. Through a crack in the curtains he could see her, and those tears she shed not too long ago were pouring out again. Pain pulsed through him and he turned away. His lack of experience didn't help him in his disability to make things better.

He decided to wait until morning to get into action. He walked further down the branch and sat, leaning on the trunk. He stared at the window until he found that he couldn't, and relaxed against the tree.

--

Hinata woke up. She didn't feel like doing anything today. All that crying last night… it made her tired beyond belief.

She got out of bed and stretched, then shivered at the cold. She thought the window was open (despite the fact she knew she closed it last night) and moved to close it. The curtains were opened, and in her view was a familiar vampire sitting, bored, outside on her tree. He noticed her and moved to stand up, but she quickly retreated, a bright blush on her face.

Deidara's shoulders slumped, and he sat back down and leaned on the trunk again. _Hinata-san…_ He decided to be bold. He walked up to the window and knocked twice. He knew she was there. "H…Hinata-san. Please." He pleaded aloud.

Hinata clenched her fists, trying hard to resist him. Somehow, she did. He jumped down from the tree and left. She waited a long time before checking to see if he was there.

He wasn't.

-:-

It was late afternoon, and Hinata was taking a walk to clear her head. Little did she know, however, that she was walking in the direction of Deidara's house. It was only a few blocks down, and she was walking down that same street. Pretty soon it was down the same walkway, about to knock on the same door…

It opened by itself. Deidara stood in the doorway, shocked, surprised, the like.

Suddenly, she had a purpose in coming here. A purpose in subconsciously walking to Deidara-san's house and knocking on his door. A reason for him to walk with her to the park.

She grabbed his hand, pulling him down the street. He followed wordlessly; just happy to see her again.

"Deidara… sama."

Now, what was that supposed to mean?

-:-

It snowed~!

It snowed~!

Ahh, it's cold. O.o

Har har.


	13. Hinata

"_Deidara…sama."_

Deidara stared at her for a second. No, more than a second. Minutes. Long, studious minutes. Even under a thick winter jacket and a scarf he himself gave her, she was different from the Hinata-san he's been trying to win back for the past day.

"Deidara-sama… it's… It's me."

The pitch of her voice had changed somewhat as well. Her hair was darker, and her eyes held a certain kind of innocence of a young girl. A young maid.

"You haven't forgotten me because of Hinata-san, have you?"

A giggle.

Then it hit him.

The girl in front of him wasn't Hinata-san.

The girl in front of him was _Hinata._

"A-Ah… I-N… No… I… I haven't forgotten you…H…Hinata." He had to stop himself from adding 'san'.

Hinata danced forward a couple steps and turned to face him.

"You two are going through a tough time, huh?" She asked. Deidara nodded. "Hinata… It's been so long. Really… how have you –" Deidara reached out to her, to hug her, but she put a finger out to his chest and stopped him. "Now there's the thing. You're still clinging to me after all this time." She smiled a little.

"All she wants is a little reassurance that you love her, Deidara-sama."

Deidara gave her a look of comfort. She smiled even wider, grinning. "You have to try harder to get her alone with you. Leave Sasori-sama for later—when you have the strength of two people."

"Hinata… I might need the strength of three." He cupped her face and ran his thumb over her cheek. She leaned up to his kiss, slowly changing back to the other Hinata.

_Wh… What am I…_ Hinata opened her eyes and saw Deidara. They were kissing. She tried pushing away, and Deidara immediately tightened his grip on her, getting the hint that it was the present Hinata. He parted for a second to give her air, then kissed her again. One of her arms got loose and she slapped the side of his head. It was as if he didn't feel a thing. In fact, his hand moved up to hold her hand to his head. He kept kissing her, and it became harder and harder to resist.

"D-Deidara-san…" She started. "Hm…?" he moved to kissing her cheeks and nibbling on her ear. "D…Didn't you feel anything when I hit you…?" she asked. Deidara shook his head, scooting down to her neck. "Nothing." He felt her arm wrap around his neck and he smiled.

Hinata blushed a dark red, shutting her eyes. It was odd for her to be displaying this kind of affection outside in public. "D-Deidara-san… Deidara-san!" He stopped kissing her for a minute to answer her. "Yes, Hinata-san?" he chuckled at her bright red face. "I… I'm still mad at you." She stated awkwardly. "Oh _are_ you now? Well I'm waiting for another blow to the face." He backed away a little to give her a clear shot to his head. Hinata raised her arm, alright. It just had different intentions.

A sudden jerk from the jacket, and he was pulled against her lips again, caught in a lip-lock lead by her. He gladly responded. "I'm so mad at you, Deidara-san!" she said, kissing him between sentences. "So mad… so mad." She got a little tired, and Deidara took over. "I like it when you're mad at me then." He laughed as she hit him again.

…_Is it normal to love someone this much?_

"Hinata-san… I love you." Deidara whispered in her ear.

"I… I-I love you too, Deidara-san…" Hinata whispered back.

They stared into each other's eyes for a long time. "Deidara-san… Deidara-san, I-"

There was a vibrating phone in her pocket. Someone was calling her.

"_HINATA HYUGA! DO YOU HAVE __ANY__ GODLY IDEA WHAT TIME IT IS?!" _

Hinata squeaked in surprise. "Aw crap! It's Neji!" she yelled.

"Dad." Deidara corrected.

"What?"

"Neji-san is your _Dad._" He explained, chuckling softly.

"R-Right! I know that! I just… decided to… to… aw, shuz it!" she made up the word to add a little play before she left.

"_GET YOUR SORRY BUTT HOME __NOW.__" _

"Y-Yes, Dad! C-Coming!" Hinata quickly closed the phone and began running out onto the sidewalk.

"Hinata-san! Do you want me to drive you home?" Deidara offered. Hinata ran back and jumped into his arms. "Yes please." She giggled, letting him carry her to the car parked outside the gate.

"Deidara."

There was a long pause before Deidara put Hinata down and turned around.

"…I'll drive her home." It was Sasori, leaning on the doorframe of the front door. Hinata stared, concerned and suspicious, at the vampire. Why the sudden request? What did he care if she got home or not?

Deidara shook his head. "I-It won't take long if I drive fast enough. You don't have to trouble yourself about it-"

"I _said_, I'll drive her home. Give me the keys." Sasori walked out wearing only jeans and a black hoodie with the sleeves rolled up. He held out his hand and Deidara reluctantly gave him the keys. Hinata stared at him in disbelief. "Now you guys kiss good night before I get sick." Sasori spat, moving to sit in the car.

Deidara held Hinata's face in his hands and kissed her, long and hard before pulling away. "I'll be following the car on foot. I'll make sure he keeps you safe." He murmured reassuringly in her ear. Hinata nodded, sneaking another kiss from him before going to the car.

"I love you, Hinata-san." Deidara called.

Hinata nodded. "I love you too…"

"Ughh… you two quit that. You, get in the car." Sasori pointed at Hinata and jerked his thumb at the seat beside him. Hinata was hesitant and reluctant. "What, you wanna go home or not?" Hinata took a deep breath and walked into the car, sitting as far away from Sasori as possible. She glanced at Deidara once before the car jerked forward at the sudden stomp of the gas pedal. The second she glanced away Deidara was already following from the sidewalk. She couldn't see him, and she wondered if Sasori did.

"Hyuga."

Hinata quickly turned her head to him, paying quick attention.

"How much do you love Deidara?" he asked, gripping the wheel tightly.

"…Love… Deidara…?" she took a moment to gather the words in her head. "…Words… cannot describe what I feel and how much of it I feel." She said after a while. Sasori scoffed.

"You know he's mine, right? I mean, how many times have you done it with him? With me, I lost count at ten." He was being so blunt with her, it made her blush. "That's gotta count for something, y'know? You just met the guy like, two weeks ago. I've known him since back in '08. That's a century and what, 14 years?" he laughed to himself. "You got nothing on me."

They were silent. They reached Hinata's street, and he stopped a block before. Sasori turned to her.

"But I guess years don't matter. It's how you treat the guy, right?" he sounded… kinder than before. "Me? Hah. I've been forcing that guy into bed every other night. I wouldn't be surprised if he hated me or something." Another pause. He looked down for a second, and Hinata leaned closer to him to see if he was alright.

Suddenly his hand reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her towards him. He kissed her passionately, softly, gently. He caressed her face with his cold hands lovingly and slowly pressed harder. Hinata was swept away, and she closed her eyes in awe. He let go of her and retreated to the other side of the car.

"Hinata Hyuga…" he started. Hinata was still in shock at what he just did.

"Hinata… you have no idea how much I wish I could kiss Deidara like that." Sasori ran a hand through his hair and gripped a handful. "Whenever you can… kiss him like that. For me." He reached out to her again, brushing a few strands of hair away from her face. "You know… before… I loved you too." He cupped her face and kissed her once again, quick and painless.

"S… Sasori…" Hinata started, speaking for the first time that moment. "I… I-I'm sorry." She hugged him tightly, and he hugged back. "It was my mistake. I… I'll stop… harassing you two." Hinata started to cry in his chest. "I love you, Hinata." He said softly.

The phone in her pocket vibrated again.

"_Hinata Hyuga, I swear to the HEAVENS I'll ground you 'til you're sixty if you don't step into this house in the next five minutes!"_

Hinata sighed. Sasori chuckled, unlocking the car to let her out. Hinata quickly wiped her tears away and stepped out of the car.

"Oh, Hyuga." Sasori called. Hinata turned to look at him.

"This never happened, okay?" he pointed a finger at her to confirm his seriousness. Hinata laughed a little. "You wish it did." She replied, hurrying into the house before her father blew his top.

A few minutes later, Deidara stepped into the car.

"How much of it did you hear?" Sasori asked, starting the car again. "I got the gist of it." Deidara replied softly. "Hm…"

"Sasori… I can't return your feelings. I'm sorry." He sighed, closing his eyes. "It's nothing." Sasori began driving, the ride silent the rest of the way.

-:-

Christmas Eve.

They were on a small date, having a late-night dinner in a private booth at a restaurant. She was leaning on him, and he kept his lips attached to at least one part of her head.

"How did I live a hundred years without you?" he murmured, kissing her lightly. "You were waiting for me." She wrapped her arms around him, and they kissed more deeply.

"Deidara-san…" Hinata smiled a little, touching his face and brushing the hair away for a minute. "I… I'm sorry I got mad at you so much before… I knew it wasn't your fault." She apologized. Deidara stared at her in disbelief, leaning towards her until he was on top. "What's this all of a sudden?" he asked, leaning down to kiss her head. "I don't know… I just… never really felt forgiven, y'know?" Hinata tilted her head to the side; he nibbled on her ear.

"You're crazy." Deidara moved down to her neck, taking in her scent. "Hinata-san, no matter what you do, I'll always forgive you. I hope you can forgive me for the things _I've_ done, or failed to do." He wrapped his arms around her and rolled so that she was on top of him. "Of course…" Hinata rested her head on his chest. Cold, yet warm in a sense. She loved it. She loved _him._

"Now… I have something important to ask you." Deidara sat up, placing Hinata at his side, glued to his hip. She looked at him, and he took a deep breath. "It's a rather life-changing matter. Extremely important." He looked down at the food, and then her.

"Hinata-san… Will you… Will you become a vampire for me?"

Hinata stared at him, a little surprised at what he said. Become a vampire? Her?

"Or… I could say, may I turn you into a vampire?" Deidara rephrased. "I-It's okay to say no, I mean, being human has its ups and downs too…" the look in his eyes wanted her to say yes. "But… humans don't last forever… like we vampires do." Hinata gripped his jacket and looked him in the eye. "Will it be you… who does it?" she asked. Deidara chuckled. "Of course, it'll be me. Who else _could_ it be?" he kissed her head.

"Deidara-san…"

"Hm?"

"Is this… Is this some weird vampire way of proposing to a girl?"

"Well, I _do_ want to spend my forever with you. Is that okay?"

Hinata stared at him for a while and then laughed. "Then I say yes."

It was Deidara's turn to stare at her, his eyes wide in surprise. "Y-You… R-Really!?" he asked, standing up. Hinata nodded, suddenly being hoisted up and hugged. "Oh… Oh my god! Hinata-san, Hinata-san…!" he kissed her over and over again. "I haven't felt this happy since the first time I met you!" he kept kissing her. "You've made me so happy!" he laughed, kissing her. Hinata laughed with him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"When are you going to?" she asked.

"When? Oh… When… I don't know – soon!"

Deidara kissed her so deeply, she almost fainted.

"Hinata-san, I love you." He murmured into her ear. His voice was so soft and soothing, deep and warm; but it wasn't the reason she really fainted this time.

-:-

_Why is it so dark…? Wait, who's that over there…?_

_Hidan-sama…_

_Konan-sama…_

_Pein-sama…_

_Who are these people?_

_Kakuzu-sama…_

_Zetsu-sama…_

_Tobi-san…_

_Itachi-sama_

_Kisame-sama…_

_How do I know all their names?_

_Sasori…sama… I know him…_

_Deidara-sama… I know him too…_

"_Hinata…?"_

_That's… me, isn't it?_

"_Hinata, won't you join me for some tea?"_

_That voice… it's not mine… someone's there…?_

"_I'm so sorry, Hinata…"_

_Sorry for what? There's nothing to feel sorry about…_

"_Hinata…"_

"_Hinata…"_

"_Hinata-san…"_

"_Hinata-san…?"_

"Hinata-san!"

Hinata jumped up, startled. She was breathing hard, her eyes wide and searching around her.

"Hinata-san, are you alright?"

The voice… Deidara-san! She turned to where the voice was coming from, noticing the concerned look he gave her. "Oh, you scared me! Are you alright, Hinata-san?" he walked over and cupped her face, the back of her head, shoulder, to see if she was hurting anywhere. "Deidara-san…" Hinata stared up at him as he continued to survey her body for any places that hurt. "Are you in pain? Please, talk to me, Hinata-san…" he sounded desperate.

"Deidara-san…" she repeated, clasping a hand on his shoulder. He stopped to study her a little more. "Hinata-san?" he held her face in both hands. He felt her warm tears on his hand, and he quickly wiped them away. "What's… What's wrong…?" he softly asked, adjusting so that she could grip his shirt better. She closed her eyes tightly, letting the tears fall.

"Take me… to the mansion." The words sounded forced, but she meant them all the same. He didn't quite understand, but he knew it was a request he couldn't refuse.

He was going back to the place he once called home.

-:-

Have you ever fallen for someone who lives across the nation?

Someone you can't get a hold of except through internet?

Someone you want to talk to and hear all the time?

Unfortunately, I have.


	14. The Mansion

Gaarsh…

-:-

"Hidan-san? Will you be leaving now?"

"Ah – yeah. I've got somewhere to be. Thanks for your hard work."

"Oh, of course. Where are you going?"

"Just… somewhere. I go there often after work."

"I see… Okay. See you tomorrow!"

"Bye."

--

Hidan left the store, putting on his jacket to seem normal to other people. He made his way out of town, towards a building lost in the forest outside. It was lost, but he found it quickly. The garden was taken care of very well, and the inside was as clean as a 223-year-old could keep it.

He walked over to a small place just a small ways away from the garden. It was here that the most beautiful flowers in the whole garden grew, without the help of seeds. The flowers simply grew. Vines created a frame around the stone protruding from the ground.

**Hinata Hyuga**

**19XX-2008**

**Dearly beloved maid of this mansion.**

He smiled a little to himself.

"Hi, Hinata. Do you like the garden? You'd better, I worked friggen hard on it." He chuckled to himself. The flowers danced in the slight breeze, almost laughing with him. He gently stroked one of the flower's petals, as if they were the maid herself. "I miss you, y'know? Haha, I miss talking to you." He moved from a crouch to sitting cross-legged on the soft grass, removing his hat. It crumpled a little in his clenched fist, a slight dazed look on his face.

"Aye-ay-ay… What's a guy gonna do?" He leaned back and relaxed a bit, bathing in the brief sunlight of the day. They said it was going to snow later, so might as well take in some sun. He'd grown out of his vampiric habits and come to enjoy living among humans. He kept in touch with Kakuzu, who lived in the same town as he did. It was comforting to know that he wasn't the only vampire in his town.

"I wonder what the others are doing…"

--

"Hinata-san, are you _sure_ about this? I mean, it's been a hundred _years._ The mansion's gonna be a _little_ shitty looking." Deidara and Hinata were walking down the sidewalks at the edge of town. "And do we have to walk? You might get tired… I can run back and get the car." He was extremely worried about her sudden change in attitude about the whole 'past' Hinata. She suddenly wanted to explore. She wanted to know all the details.

"The mansion's a long ways away from here – even in the car. We can't _walk…_ Well, I can, but you certainly—"

Hinata suddenly stopped. Deidara did too, a few steps ahead of her.

"_Please_, Hinata. Be reasonable." He almost begged.

She looked up at him, a newly determined look on her face. "Deidara-san. I feel… different. About everything. And I know that what I feel is right. And what I feel is that I need to go to the place where she _lived_ for the last few months of her life." She began walking. "And I don't want to take a car… since you didn't have one before." Deidara bit his lip and followed her, reluctant to each step.

It was when they were heading into the forest that he decided to carry her. He walked up behind her and swept her off her feet, catching her by surprise. "Deidara-san…"

"You even weigh about the same." He didn't allow himself to kiss her until they got to the mansion. Instead, he nosed her cheek and enjoyed her presence.

"Hinata and I… we did walk to the nearby towns a lot." He looked up to the sky. "On nice days in the winter like this." He looked down at Hinata and smiled. "And I carried her, since I didn't want her to tire or hurt in the slightest. I wanted her to be close to me, as well. I loved for much longer than the both of us thought." Hinata leaned into him, holding onto a part of his jacket.

"She loved me too… it's just that… Sasori got in the way." He gripped her tightly. Hinata wrapped her arms around his neck to comfort him. "He took advantage of her… and…" Hinata gently stroked his hair, calming him down a little. "Shh… you don't have to say any more." She hushed; and he couldn't help but kiss her then. She was so understanding… he loved her so much.

They were at the mansion a few minutes later, and they noticed a certain silver-haired man sitting in the middle of a well-grown garden of flowers.

--

Hidan glanced to his side, immediately taking notice to the couple walking in from the fence. He locked eyes with the blonde, not allowing himself to look at the painfully familiar one in his arms.

"Deidara." He murmured.

"Hidan." Deidara greeted.

There was a short silence, and Hinata glanced at the two. Hidan felt too relaxed to get up, so he said in a louder voice,

"'Sup?"

Deidara chuckled lightly.

"Heh. A hundred years and that's all you say? You're a riot."

Hidan laughed with him. Deidara walked up to where he was sitting, plopping down with Hinata still in his arms.

"Hey, hey, watch it. It took forever to grow that out." Hidan said, suddenly protective of his garden. Another silence, and Hidan finally gathered the guts to ask who the girl was.

"She's… um… Hinata Hyuga." Deidara got her into a more comfortable position, sitting on his lap. Hinata waved meekly at Hidan, who waved back.

"Hinata Hyuga, huh? Hi, then. I'm Hidan." He extended a hand towards her, and she took it. They shook once before letting go. "Nice to meet you, Hidan-san…" Hinata whispered. Something in her ticked. She wanted to say more, but also didn't. She wanted to talk to him, about his day, how he's been all this time… questions you'd ask a person if you haven't seen them for a long time.

They just met.

Perhaps he wanted to say something as well. He looked like he had so much to say. But they all knew it would be better to stay silent. He got it; she wasn't the one he was hoping to see. They understood that much. It was that understanding that gave them a connection. They could communicate through this.

_I may not be her… but we can make new memories from now on!_

…_**I'd like that.**_

They smiled at each other, as if they were old friends. In a sense, they were. And they would continue to be so.

Deidara glanced at both of them, his arm tightening around Hinata. He understood not long after, and cracked a smile at Hidan.

"Hinata," Deidara said after a while. "You know whose grave this is, correct?" Hinata turned to look at the beautifully decorated tombstone in front of her. "…Yes." She answered softly. She crawled off of Deidara's lap and in front of the grave, briefly paying her respects. Hidan and Deidara stood and took a few steps behind her, softly catching up with each other after all this time.

"Hinata is… her aunt." Deidara explained.

"That explains a lot." Hidan laughed to himself. "You two going out?" he asked. "Of course." Deidara answered. "Damn."

"I don't think she knows yet, though. That Hinata's her aunt, I mean." Deidara continued. "Why don't you tell her?" Hidan asked. "I don't know… something's holding me back, I guess." There was a pause. "I can't tell her everything. She has to figure some things out herself." He concluded.

"What happened to Sasori? You two left the mansion together last time I saw you." Hidan asked. He shoved his hands in his pockets and swayed from side to side.

"Oh. We live together." Deidara's look turned downcast.

"Are you two still…"

"Still what?"

"…Fucking…?"

"…Vulgar as always, Hidan."

"I say it as it is."

Deidara sighed. "…He let go after Hinata-san showed up. We're just… friends now, I guess." He looked up to the sky, the last glimpses of sun disappearing in the clouds. "He loves Hinata… and Hinata-san. Both. I don't blame him." he closed his eyes. "But… He's punishing himself for all the shit he put me through. He purposely fell in love with Hinata-san… and is living with the pain of having someone else take her away." An awkward silence between them. Hidan had nothing to say, except,

"…That sucks."

"Haha. It does."

--

_Hinata… can you hear me?_

_Perfectly._

_Wow… I… I can't believe you're right here._

_I can't either._

_These flowers are so… beautiful._

_Hidan-sama helped me out a bit. Isn't the whole garden beautiful?_

_Yes… Hidan-san took great care of this place. _

_Has Deidara-sama taken you into the mansion yet? I hope Hidan-sama hasn't left it a _complete_ mess…_

…_W-Would it be okay to ask…?_

_Of course. He loves you, remember?_

_You too._

_It's different for me._

_How?_

_You'll get it someday._

Hinata stood up and walked to where Deidara and Hidan were standing. Deidara took her hand. "What do you want to do now?" he asked sweetly, smiling at her. Hinata smiled a little in return. "Would it be alright… to go in?" this time she looked to Hidan for permission. He nodded.

The inside was a little dark, if not for the always open windows. Everything was so… old styled, compared to the houses back in town. It was like walking into an old castle in England. High ceilings, grand staircases, large doors leading to common rooms, long hallways, tall pillars, and a magnificent chandelier hung from the ceiling.

She felt his hand grip hers tightly, and suddenly she felt guilty for making him come back.

"Deidara-san…" She started. He shook his head.

"No, let's keep going."

Hidan gave them a small tour of the place. Nothing's changed much, except the place was a little dustier than Deidara remembered. He got a good look at his old room; everything was where he left it. His bed was made perfectly, his drawers empty, his closet – never really full in the first place – devoid of all clothing, and the scratched up mirror he could never see himself in. There was a place, however, hidden from everyone in the mansion. And that held a box of memories from his few years at the mansion. Trinkets, gifts, useless pictures… Deidara decided to keep that box where it was.

Then they came across Hinata's room. It was here that Deidara showed most discomfort. Hinata studied him carefully as he stood stiff in front of the door. He could still smell her. He could feel her presence through the thick wood of the door. He could see her, broken and frail, in his arms on the bed. Hear her soft, crooked voice, the ailments of a broken heart. Feel her shaking as the realization hit her that she was going to die.

And it was in this room she fell asleep, never to wake again, in his cold arms that winter.

"Deidara-san?" Hinata's fingers interlaced with his, calming him down.

"You okay, man?" Hidan asked, giving him a pat on the back.

Apparently, Deidara was taking deep breaths, unnerving the other two. Hinata gave him a concerned look and stepped him away from the room.

"I'm sorry. This was a bad idea – we should leave now, if you're uncomfortable like this –" Deidara held her in place, wrapping both arms around her. "No… Let's… Stay. I want to see." Hinata could feel him shake a little, but she agreed. Hidan absently rubbed his cheek and opened the door.

"I didn't change a thing." Hidan moved aside to let the two in. "Don't mess too much up, alright?" he said it to lighten the mood, but proved unsuccessful. "Thanks, Hidan." Deidara murmured, trying to take in the whole room at once. He held onto Hinata as tight as he could without hurting her, and stepped a little closer to the bed. It was still a little messed up from the last person who was there – which was him.

Slowly, he sat down on the part of the bed that wasn't moved. Hinata sat beside him, running a finger over his cold hand. Hidan left the two alone, deciding to make his daily rounds around the house for anything to clean or fix.

"She… She died in here. That's why… That's why I'm acting so… awkward here." Deidara explained, leaning on her for a little. "I'm sorry." Hinata apologized softly. He shook his head. "It's all in the past now." They shared a silence that Hinata wasn't completely comfortable with. She knew she could do something to make it better, and it didn't involve leaving the mansion.

Silently, Hinata moved away from him and crawled over to the opposite side of the bed. The side that was still clean and unmoved. She moved the covers, crawling under. Deidara stared after her in confusion. "H-Hinata-san, what are you…" he trailed off as she deliberately left the covers open for him to crawl in.

"Let's… let's start over. Make it a happier ending than that." She referred to the spot behind her, and Deidara walked around to face her. "Hinata-san… Really, it's okay." He gave her an almost playful look to hide the way he really felt.

"Don't try and fool me like that. Join me. We can make it a better ending. I promise." She tugged at his jacket sleeve. He let her pull him down to her and wrap the blanket around them. She hugged him tightly, burying her face in his chest. Her eyes closed, and the words flowed through her.

"Deidara-sama… I think… I think I loved you… the whole time."

Her words caught him off guard completely. His feelings took over, his actions completely as scripted by him the last time. Gently, he cupped her face, and slowly he said,

"I've loved you… the whole time as well."

He closed his eyes as she said her part.

"I'm… I'm glad." She smiled, not as weakly as before. Deidara closed his eyes tighter, pleading that this is the part that she was hoping to change.

But nothing happened. Hinata laughed a little, as if it was obvious what the next action would be.

"This is the part… where we kiss." She said. Deidara smiled. He lowered himself to her lips and pressed gently. It felt like he was kissing her for the first time. It felt like it was supposed to happen, and it _was_ happening. Everything was right and would be right from now on. Her lips – so soft, so warm – were so natural against his. Her warmth contrasted with hers perfectly; they were a pair.

The kiss, in reality, only lasted a few seconds. But the mere feeling of it made it last even longer.

"Hinata…" he said her name without the suffix. "Deidara-san?" Hinata felt him trembling again, but it was for a different reason. He was happy – no – _furiously_ happy. He was un_believably_ happy. He kept kissing her, muttering her name in between. "I love you, Hinata. I love you so much." And he wasn't talking about the old Hinata. He was talking about the one in his arms. The one who would stay with him forever.

Forever.

--

"What're you two waiting for, Christmas? It's gonna start snowing any minute now!" Hidan called from outside the mansion. Deidara and Hinata were helping him clean a few things up before leaving for the day. The mention of Christmas made Hinata remember something. Something important.

"…OH MY GOD." She yelled as they were running down the woodland trail to Konoha. "Hinata?" Deidara inquired.

"D-Deidara-san! It's- It's Christmas!" Hinata shrieked in panic.

"Christmas?" Both Deidara and Hidan asked curiously.

"Christmas? What do you mean, _Christmas?_ It's the holiday where I have to give everyone I know and love gifts! Oh, I can't believe it's _today,_ Christmas!" Hinata groaned.

"Ch-Christmas… H-Happy Christmas?" Deidara tried, to cheer Hinata up a little. "Merry Christmas." Hinata sighed.

"Oh. _Merry_ Christmas."

--

The door opens.

"Hinata! Where've you been?"

"I had something big to take care of."

"Oh. Well, come now, we're opening presents!"

"S-Sorry!"

Hinata spent the rest of Christmas day with her family, thankful that they weren't really angry at her for being out so long.

-:-

Merry Christmas everyone…!

Sorry for the somewhat half-assed ending to this chapter.

I mean, I wanted to get this up NOW for some reason.

You get that, right? Setting up a goal to finish something before something else… yeah…

So yeah.

Er… I'm glad you guys are commenting about my little love problem X'D it's a little embarrassing, but I'm glad you guys care! :D

[And i'm not going to Canada :( Fail Snow is Fail.]


	15. Chapter Fifteen

Anybody listen to the band Annasay?

They have the kind of songs I like listening to while writing :D

-:-

It was a few days into January, 2109. Hinata had finally formally introduced Deidara to her parents, and now they were sitting in the living room discussing a very serious matter.

"…You want to _what?_" Neji asked, his brow twitching in agitation. Deidara and Hinata glanced at each other.

"M-Mr. Hyuga, sir. Um… I-I'm sure that words cannot possibly explain how much I love your daughter, but… I assure you that we both want this. Of course, we cannot do so without your permission." Deidara reasoned, placing a hand over Hinata's. Neji gave him a skeptical look. He didn't trust Deidara one bit.

"You expect me to let you turn my daughter into one of _you!?_" Neji said, raising his voice. Hinata flinched a little; She didn't like it when he raised his voice. "D-Dad, please…"

Neji looked at her with a pained expression. "Hinata, please… be reasonable." He pleaded suddenly.

"But Dad…"

"But Hinata…"

A silence.

"Hinata, when he turns you into a vampire, you'll live long enough to see us die." Neji explained. Realization hit Deidara with that. It was true. If Hinata were to live forever with him, she'd have to live through everyone she loves – and watch them die, one by one. Was he so in need of her to make her go through that? Was he so selfish to request such a thing of her? He tensed a little, getting ready to apologize and call the whole idea off. It was stupid of him to –

"I… I-I know." Hinata squeezed Deidara's arm. He stared at her in awe. She was going to sacrifice everything for him. He was beginning to wonder if he was really worth it. "Hinata…" she looked up to him and smiled reassuringly. _I want to spend forever with you, too._

Neji frowned, his expression showing the conflict between loving her enough to let her go or loving her enough to talk her out of it. He didn't know which choice was better for his eldest daughter. It was obvious that they both truly loved each other. But he wondered if she could truly handle watching her own family die in front of her. That was what he was really worried about.

"Hinata… He's right. I don't want you to hurt like that. I'm sorry I brought it up." Deidara wrapped an arm around Hinata tightly. Neji stared at the two, suddenly feeling a sort of guilt for the vampire. "Deidara-san… But…" Hinata looked disappointed for a few minutes, but decided that it was probably the best for both of them.

"I apologize for this, Mr. Hyuga." Deidara stood up, about to take his leave. Hinata followed him to the door.

"Wait."

Neji thought hard for a long minute before saying,

"…Take care of her, alright?"

It took Deidara a minute to register the words, but when he did, he grinned at him. "Thank you, Mr. Hyuga.

-:-

There was a man walking out into the woods. It was another bright and sunny winter day, and the garden of the mansion up ahead was more noticeable.

Sasori strolled through the gate, not noticing the silver haired man tending to some tulips in the corner. He ignored him, however, and walked over to the grave on the other side, sitting down in front of it. He didn't speak, he didn't move. Just sat there, staring at the name, year, and the small saying at the bottom.

Someone –probably the man who was taking care of the tulips – sat behind him, back to back.

"What's up?"

That annoying tone couldn't be mistaken for anything else.

"What are you doing here, Hidan?"

"That's my line. You thought these flowers took care of themselves?"

"Hmph."

The two sat in silence, listening to the breeze as it wove through the trees around them.

"I saw Deidara and Hinata not too long ago. He said you lived with him still. Do you?"

"I wouldn't call it living." Sasori was clearly sulking.

"I should come and visit sometime, huh? Bring 'Kuzu along for the heck of it." Hidan said, ignoring Sasori's previous comment.

"Sure. I bet Hinata would like that." He smiled a little. Then frowned. They sat in more silence, a little heavier than before.

"Do you miss her, Hidan?" he asked. "Uh huh." Hidan answered casually, closing his eyes. "How much?" there was probably no significance to these questions, so he answered, "A lot. You?" There was a pause, and then a soft, "Too much." At that, Hidan laughed.

-:-

Sasori made his way home, fingering a piece of paper with numbers written on it. The two had exchanged phone numbers, and said that they'd call each other one day; Deidara or Sasori.

A grimace made its way onto his face when he found Hinata and Deidara sitting on the couch together. She was asleep and Deidara was watching TV. He almost slammed the door closed if it weren't for his conflicting feeling to not wake the girl on the couch. Instead, the door made a small clack that only Deidara noticed.

"Welcome home, Sasori." He said softly.

"What's she doing here?" Sasori spat, trying to sound annoyed. He was doing pretty well.

"I don't know… she insisted on staying the night. But I don't mind at all." He smiled a little as she stirred a bit in her sleep. He stroked her hair briefly before turning back to Sasori. "Doesn't her dad hate us or something?" his voice raised a little, and Deidara told him to quiet down. "I guess she got the okay to stay here. I mean, she has an extra set of clothes and everything." Sasori sighed and sat on the other couch across from them.

Sasori, needless to say, didn't like it when Hinata was around the house. It was almost like she was gloating to him about how she had Deidara and he didn't. But at the same time, he enjoyed her company and half the time he felt like touching her, holding her, kissing her… She confused him. That was the reason he didn't want her here. It made him question his sexual preference.

Well, generally, he's interested in women. Deidara is –so far – the only man he's been after for a while. Ever since he's laid eyes on him, he's been hit with some strange force that compelled him to like him a lot more than normal. It didn't help that they became best friend in an instant.

"Sasori," Deidara started, pulling him out of his thoughts. "Are you… alright?" he gave him a concerned look. "You know I love you as a friend, right?" Sasori turned away, a small amount of guilt forming inside of him. He began wondering if he deserved a friend like Deidara.

"Dei…" he began. He decided not to say his name. "I… I know."

Hinata started to wake up, and the two fell silent.

"S…Sasori-san? Hi…" She sat up, rubbed her eyes and smiled a little at Sasori. He turned away, still sulking. He eventually gave in and glanced back at her, muttering a small hi. Deidara smiled at him. Hinata did as well.

It got late at night, and Deidara took Hinata back to his room.

"You already took a nap – how are you going to sleep now?" Deidara asked in an almost scolding tone. Hinata rolled around on the bed, giggling a bit. "I wanted to stay up with you a little longer." She said, stopping to look at him. He smiled at her as he changed out of his day clothes. He wore a regular T-shirt and jogging pants.

"Well what are we going to do until you fall asleep?" he asked, plopping down on the bed beside her. Hinata shrugged. "I dunno. I just feel like being awake when you're awake." She relaxed a little on the bed, closing her eyes. His hand found hers, and their fingers interlaced.

"Deidara-san… does being turned into a vampire hurt?" Hinata asked. Deidara thought for a bit. "…Yeah." He didn't know the standard height of a woman vampire, but he had to grow to about… 6 feet. It was like all the painful growth spurts you were supposed to get combined into one. And plus the fangs had to grow out. And most of the organs your body needed as a human function less – a lot less – and… you're not really a human anymore.

It puzzled him how she wasn't having second thoughts about it after knowing that it hurt.

"What are you going to miss about my human self?" She asked casually, rolling a bit to hug him. Deidara didn't need to think for that one. "Your beating heart. Your warmth." He pulled her close, pressing his hand to her lower back; his hand under her shirt. His lips brushed against her ear, and he got the reaction he wanted; her blush. "But I'll miss that the most." He whispered. Hinata stared up at him, her eyes wide with surprise. "Why do you like it when I blush so much?" she squeaked. "It means you like whatever it is I'm doing." He smiled sweetly, and she blushed an even darker red.

"Wh-What's that supposed to mean!?" she buried her face in his chest, squeezing him tightly. He chuckled, and she could feel it vibrating in his chest. "You feel really hot right now… should I cool you down a bit?" His other hand reached deeper under her shirt, and she squeaked again at the chill riding up her back. "N-N-No, no, no, that's fine! I-I-I'm f-fine!" Hinata stammered. She felt embarrassed to have him touch her like that – and even more so that she enjoyed it.

"It's okay to love it, Hinata." He murmured hotly, as if he read her mind. He nuzzled her a little and kissed her. She leaned into it, and the kiss became a little more heated than he thought. Not that he minded.

His hands traveled nearly everywhere under her shirt, sending chills up and down. He kissed her neck, her collarbone – she groaned lightly. He rolled a bit so that she was on top of him, and he gave her one long kiss before stopping. She was panting lightly, and his arms around her waist tightened a little.

"That…" she started between breaths. "That should happen… more often." She sighed and kissed him lightly before lying next to him. He smiled and kissed her head. "Then it will."

Meanwhile, Sasori was sitting just outside their door, beating himself up for listening in on their somewhat conversation. It pissed him off that he bothered to listen just to make himself feel bad.

The door opened, and Deidara walked out, scratching his head absently. "You okay?" he asked Sasori when he spotted him on the floor. Sasori found it odd that he wasn't surprised to find him there, spying. It was almost as if he anticipated it. He grunted and turned away, pouting a little. "I'm fine." he said.

"Oh. That's good. I was going to get Hinata a glass of water for when she wakes up… though I suppose it would be better if I got it when she actually _did_ wake up… then it'd be more fresh…" Deidara paused in thought. "Actually, I think I'll get myself a chocolate bar." He smiled a little as he remembered his long-time appeal to chocolate. "I'm gonna take a quick trip to the grocery store – if it's open. If Hinata wakes up, tell her I went there and that I'll be back soon."

Sasori didn't answer, and to him that was a 'yes'. Deidara smiled a little before heading out the door.

The second he was gone, Sasori stood up and walked into the room Hinata was sleeping in. He stood in front of her for a little, hoping that Deidara was going to take his time walking – he knew that Deidara didn't like driving at night. Deidara was part tree-hugger.

Hinata turned a little in her sleep, her face scrunching in discomfort. Perhaps she knew Deidara was missing even in her sleep. Sasori brushed a few strands of hair from her face, studying her carefully. His cold hand seemed to calm her a bit.

She suddenly started to wake up, and Sasori almost panicked about not getting caught. He contemplated running out of the room – he could certainly pull it off – but he couldn't bring himself to leave her. Plus he had to tell her where Deidara went. With his mouth. Touching hers. And his hands caressing her and pulling her towards him…

He found himself kissing her, instead of telling her that Deidara had gone to the grocery store to get chocolates. She was surprised to see him here – especially like this – but didn't push him away. She could sense that he needed to do this, oddly. Sasori just figured out that he needed this. Mentally, he shrugged and went along with it for a little. He slipped his tongue in, and he explored her mouth, since he didn't get the chance to the last time he kissed her.

The last time he kissed her… That was for Deidara. This time… it was all her.

He parted, since he finally got the thought that she might've needed air. She panted slightly, but still gave him a look of concern. "S… Sasori-san…" Sasori had her sit up and hugged her affectionately around the waist. "That was for you." He murmured.

They stayed like that for a little longer before Sasori decided to leave. But Hinata asked him to stay, and he really had no choice but to obey.

"Um… Deidara's at the grocery store. Getting chocolate." He said awkwardly. "Oh. Okay." Hinata replied. She invited him to sit down beside her, and he did. "Are… Are you going back to sleep? Sorry I… woke you." He reached for her hand but stopped midway. Hinata shook her head and grabbed his hand, interlacing their fingers. "I'm fine. Let's… talk." She smiled, and he did to.

The two talked for a little longer until Hinata fell back asleep. Deidara came back with a chocolate bar in his mouth.

"Shashoree?" he called softly so he wouldn't wake her up. Sasori groaned, pretending to be asleep. "Come on, 'Shoree, bampirez dun shleep." Deidara walked over to where Sasori was and tugged at his shirt. "It's annoying when you talk like that. Hurry up and eat that friggen chocolate bar." Sasori hugged Hinata a little tighter, closing his eyes. Deidara took a bite and set the bar down on the bedside table.

"You didn't do anything bad, did you?" he asked as he pulled Sasori off the bed. "No, mommy, I was a nice little boy today." He responded sarcastically. "…Good boy. You can help yourself to the cookie jar I placed atop the highest shelf in the kitchen." Sasori got up, but not to head to the kitchen to eat said cookies. Instead he watched as Deidara sat beside Hinata on the bed and caressed her face gently.

"Did she wake up?" he asked. Sasori nodded. "Humans sleep a lot, huh?" Deidara chuckled softly.

"Deidara. When are you… turning her into a vampire?" Sasori asked. Deidara shrugged. "I… I don't know if I want her to hurt that much for even a second, y'know?" the two watched Hinata stir a bit in her sleep. "You've got to do it sometime. I mean, if you really want her like that." Sasori began to walk out of the room.

"Thanks." Deidara said softly. Sasori paused at the door. "For what?"

"For not doing anything to her."

Sasori thought at the door, deciding whether he wanted to tell Deidara that he kissed Hinata or not. He decided to be vague.

"Well… I didn't fuck her, alright?"

Deidara smiled an all-knowing smile. Sasori left the room.

-:-

Sorry for the long wait –

Hope New Year's was fun for you X)

Gosh… School starts tomorrow. DD:


	16. When We Get There

Last Chapter?

Second to last chapter…

Hmm… I feel like there's more I have to write…

=\

-:-

"…Dad?"

"Yes, Hinata?"

"I'm sorry."

Neji turned from the window to his daughter, meekly standing in the doorway of his room. He held his arm out to her, and she walked over and hugged him.

"Whatever for, my dear?" he asked.

"…I know you don't want me to become a vampire… and I know you don't trust Deidara-san all that much…" she whispered, guilt making its way onto her expression. Neji wrapped his arm around her and kissed her head.

"Hinata. You can't be sorry about something you absolutely want to do." He smiled a little. "I may not trust Deidara-san too much, but I certainly trust you. And I know I'm right in doing so." He rubbed her back reassuringly as she hugged him. "And I suppose Deidara isn't all that bad a person." Hinata smiled at him and hugged him tighter. "I love you, Dad." She said. With that, she left the room.

-:-

The next morning, Hinata was surprised to find Sasori at her front door instead of Deidara.

"Sasori-san?" Sasori smiled a little to her as he walked past her and into the house. She was home alone, since everyone else was out. "Hello, Hinata. How are you?" he asked casually, as if nothing was wrong.

"What are you doing here?" Hinata motioned for him to sit on the couch. She sat across from him, fidgeting nervously under his gaze. "What am I doing here?" he repeated curiously, as if the answer was obvious. "I'm here for you, of course." he brushed his hair away from his face. "Why else would I be here?" he leaned over a bit, and all of a sudden he was sitting beside her, an arm draped over her shoulders.

"Do you need something from me?" she asked, blushing a little. "I need you." he buried his face in her hair, taking in her scent and feel. "I wanted to see you, i guess. Without Deidara, without anyone else but me." his other arm went around and pulled her closer to him. She closed her eyes tightly to resist temptation. "Wh... Why...?" Hinata squeaked out. "Because..." he leaned towards her, his lips nearly touching hers. "I'd love you... if I could." He let his lips drop to hers, and his arms wrapped tighter around her. She struggled against him a little before finding it useless to resist the force of a vampire. He continued to kiss her, pressing a little harder before letting go. But before she could take a fulfilling breath, he was kissing her again, harder.

"M...Mmn...! S-Sasori-san...!!" she mumbled, patting his shoulder to get him off. Eventually he did, and Hinata had to hold herself back from hitting him. She was Deidara's only, and it ticked her off how he thought he could just-

"I'm sorry." he mumbled.

...And it ticked her off how he thought he could just apologize so sincerely like that and get away with the kissing.

"I guess... I'm as obsessed with you as I am Deidara. I couldn't help myself." he seemed a little embarrassed at that fact, and Hinata couldn't help but smile at his expression. "It's... okay'" she replied softly.

Sasori stood up and paced around the room. "Deidara's waiting for you back home. He wanted me to take you, since he was still setting up." he took her hand and pulled her up from the couch. "Setting up? For what?" Hinata asked, following him out to the car. "Oh my. I've already said too much." Sasori teased, starting the car. Hinata pouted cutely, and Sasori leaned over and pecked her on the lips. Her next expression was even cuter. "You'd better stop that, Hinata, I might do things to you that Deidara wouldn't approve of." he whispered seductively in her ear, his lips brushing against her ear lobe. She shivered as Sasori drew back to drive off.

The walkway leading to the front door was specially decorated with spring colored flowers and a small roof of streamers overhead. Sasori offered his arm to her, and she hesitantly took it, having a strange feeling about what was inside.

The door had a small sign with 'Enter' embroidered in the center. Sasori opened the door slowly, murmuring for her to close her eyes. Hinata did, tightly in disbelief of what she just got a glimpse of. When she opened her eyes, she was blown away at how the living room she's seen so many times changed into a luxurious wedding setting, complete with an altar, an arch - beautifully decorated, and the most handsome groom dressed in a tuxedo waiting for his bride down the aisle.

Sasori brought her a simple dress to wear to this mini-wedding; it fit right over her clothes. He placed the veil on her head, and brushed her hair away from her face. She didn't need make-up.

They continued down the aisle, and she stepped up in front of Deidara, smiling at him as Sasori dressed up as a priest.

"D...Deidara-san... what is all this?" Hinata asked breathily, still in awe at how good he looked in a tux. He smiled a heart-melting smile and asked, "Is this... how you want it?"

Sasori smiled a little at her dumbfounded look of surprise. "You may now kiss the guy." the second he said that, Hinata sprang up and wrapped her arms around Deidara, kissing him as hard as she could. He kissed her back and wrapped his arms around her waist. They parted, and immediately Deidara fell down on one knee. "I still have to do this properly, you know." he chuckled, reaching into his pocket for a small velvet box. Hinata smiled, looking at Sasori in a rush of excitement and disbelief. He smiled back at her.

Deidara reached for her hand, kissing it lightly before opening the box to reveal a marvelous diamond ring. Hinata blushed deeply, the stupid smile still on her face.

"Hinata Hyuga, Will you marry me?"

Her immediate answer was yes, and she fell into his automatically open arms. "I love you, Deidara-san." she sighed wistfully. "I love you, too, Hinata." he kissed her head and hugged her tighter.

-:-

"Are you okay with it?"

"What?"

"Are you _okay_ with it?"

Sasori gave Deidara a confused look from the couch. Deidara was cleaning up a few things from the mini-wedding –slash- proposal a few hours ago. Hinata had gone back to her house, since she had technically snuck out of her house while her parents were away.

"Okay with… you marrying Hinata?" Sasori asked, still a bit confused. "Yeah. I mean, it won't change anything, but I'm just wondering if you approve or not." Deidara explained. Sasori sighed. "If it doesn't matter, then I don't need to tell you if I approve or not." He continued to stare at the ceiling, distracting himself with the odd patterns that embedded themselves in it through the years. Deidara brushed past his arm while making his way to the garbage can to throw something away. Sasori reached for his shirt and tugged gently to get Deidara's attention.

"When are you doing it?" he asked. Deidara shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm wondering if she wants the wedding in the spring or the summer… But then I wondered if she was more a winter person, then it would be a bit sooner-" Sasori cut him off. "No, not that. When are you turning her into a _vampire?_" Deidara's expression turned serious, and a look of sudden guilt flashed across his face. "I… I don't know." Sasori read his face like a book. He scooted over a bit and pulled Deidara to sit down. He still had a few streamers left in his hand to put away.

"Talk." Sasori said softly.

"I don't want her to watch everyone she loves die." Deidara spoke in a low tone. "It would break my heart to break hers." His hands turned to fists, and the streamers almost turned to dust in his grip. "But… I want to be with her forever." Sasori hugged Deidara tightly. "Deidara, just do what you _both_ want." He said, smiling at the wise tone in his voice. Deidara smiled as well, letting Sasori kiss him on the cheek.

"I have to clean up the rest of this, so I'll be on my way now." Deidara got up and began walking away. Sasori tugged at his shirt again, this time pulling him into a kiss. He held that for a few long minutes before pulling away. Deidara gave him a quizzical look.

"I… Didn't feel anything."

What did this mean? Did Sasori not love Deidara anymore? He pulled Deidara on top of him and kissed him again. "Let's have sex again. I wanna test something." He said simply, undoing Deidara's shirt. "What!? No! I can't do that!" Deidara scrambled to get off, but Sasori pulled something that he hadn't in a while: A pouty face.

Deidara flinched. It was always something about Sasori's pouty face that got him to do… almost anything. "Deidara… Please…" He said in a soft, pleasingly pleading voice. Deidara turned a light pink. He closed his eyes as this invisible force pulled their lips toward each other. Before they kissed, Deidara slammed his hand in Sasori's face. They stood still for a minute.

"Oh, poo, Deidara." He said, annoyed. Deidara almost laughed victoriously. "Not… Not this time! It won't work!" he sighed. Sasori wrapped his arms around Deidara. "Hmm… Deidara, I think I love Hinata now." Deidara snapped suddenly. He threw Sasori off the couch, over the back. Then he stood over him, glaring down. "Don't touch her." Sasori held his arms up in defense. "Calm yourself. I wouldn't dare make a move this late in the game." Deidara gave him one last glare before walking back to the couch.

-:-

"Hinata, do you really want to be a vampire?"

"Of course."

"Are you sure?"

"Uh huh."

"Even though you know it's going to hurt?"

"Yes."

"A lot?"

"…Yes."

"Not just physically, but emotionally as well."

"…Deidara-san, I love you. Nothing is going to change that. I trust you more than anyone else."

Deidara held her hand tightly. The two were sitting together in a tree (of all things) watching the sun set over the horizon.

"Okay then… A few more questions."

"Anything, Deidara-san."

"Do you want a child?"

The surprise almost knocked her off of the tree. When he caught her and landed swiftly on the branch below, she was bright red, her eyes wide in shock. He couldn't help but chuckle.

"W-We're not even… I-I mean, sh-shouldn't we wait until…" Deidara laughed and sat her down beside him. "It doesn't have to be like _that_ if you're still uncomfortable with it. There's always adoption." Deidara stroked the top of her head with his fingertips and kissed her. "But…"

"Unless…" he leaned close to her. "You… _want_ to." She shut her eyes tightly of embarrassment. She wasn't going to let herself fall off the tree again, so she gripped Deidara tightly. He chuckled softly and hugged her to him. "I'm just kidding. We'll think about that… when we get there."

"Right…" Hinata agreed, nodding slightly. She was still recovering from her blushing. "When we get there."

--

Deidara was sitting in front of the computer, researching the effects on a girl being turned into a vampire. Each site he went to scared the daylights out of him – the majority of women turned into vampires died. The woman's fragile body couldn't withstand the major changes made when the transformation took place. He wasn't so much looking for the effects now; He was searching for a way to make it less… terrifying. He couldn't imagine what he'd do if he… if he… _killed_ her.

…_However, if the woman does in fact survive the transition from human to vampire, the woman becomes unable to give birth. Since the organs humans need to survive don't function anymore, the reproductive organs completely…_

This was nothing close to what he was looking for. But the fact was very important, for if they had gone on without knowing this, there would be a mistake that couldn't be fixed.

He was pretty sure that Hinata wanted to bear his child. He didn't want to sound arrogant, but he wanted her to want that, and she did. And if he had turned her into a vampire – something he thought of doing before the wedding – and they went at it, she would be extremely, positively depressed.

_But what would our child look like?_ Deidara asked himself as he clicked on a different link.

_A child made between a vampire and a human has never been done before._

He had to talk to Hinata.

-:-

Sasori found Hidan at the mansion again. He was sent there by Deidara to invite him to the wedding – which was only a few days away.

"Sup, Sasori?" Hidan grinned at him, eying the white envelope in Sasori's hand.

"Well, Deidara and Hinata are getting married this Saturday. Wanna come?" Sasori handed Hidan the envelope, his hand then retreating back to his pocket. Hidan nodded. "O'course. Should I wear a suit?" Sasori scoffed. "Why don't you wear a garbage bag- see how that turns out." Hidan laughed, standing up. "I'll be sure to come. Should I bring 'Kuzu?" Sasori stopped himself from saying another sarcastic comment.

"I'll see you then." He turned and walked away. Hidan smiled and waved at him.

-:-

Errhhh…

Sorry for the lack of update.

Busy Busy…

Hrrmmm…...


	17. Refuse

At threat of a Mutant Chicken sent by one of my reviewers, here's chapter 17.

-:-

"I can't have babies?"

Hinata sat on her bed, a look of almost disappointment in her eye.

"When you're a vampire, you can't." Deidara corrected, restraining himself from wrapping her in his arms and wiping that look off her face. "And the world's never seen a baby that's part vampire before." Her expression changed to one of deep thought.

Deidara walked over to her and caressed her face, kissing her lightly. "I will do whatever you want me to do, Hinata." He was, of course, referring to the part of having a child. She had already decided to become a vampire, and there was no changing her mind. "Deidara-san… earlier you said that I might die if you turned me into a vampire, right?" He flinched a bit, but nodded hesitantly. "What if…" she paused to gather her thoughts. "What if… while the child is developing inside me, you do it?" Deidara had no idea how she pieced that together just now, nor did he know why she thought that would work.

"Hinata, I absolutely _refuse_ to experiment this on you."

"But you said 'whatever I want you to do'."

He stared at her sternly, trying to convince her to cook up a different plan. It worked, and Hinata sighed. "You're such a liar, Deidara-san." He sighed in relief and gladly sat down to hear her other thoughts.

"Um… Why don't we just… have the baby first, if I can't have one later…?" She offered. Deidara nodded slowly as he thought. It seemed like a good idea. Just after their wedding, during their honeymoon, they'd …make the baby… and when the baby's born she'll become a vampire. That sounded like a plan. "Alright. That's better." He kissed her lovingly and hugged her.

"You should go – Dad still doesn't like you sneaking into my room." Hinata giggled a bit as he constantly pecked her with small kisses. He walked her to the window, where he gave her one last kiss before walking off. "Okay – bye, I love you." She returned the comment with a blown kiss, and he laughed.

-:-

Sasori decided to take Hinata out on one last date before her whisking away down the aisle. He had taken her to dinner and walked in the park. They were now walking back to Hinata's house when suddenly he stopped, Hinata stopping a few steps ahead unsuspectingly.

He reached for her hand and pulled her against him. She was shorter than he was, and he towered over her from behind as she looked up puzzlingly at him. "This is your last night being available, huh?" he murmured into her hair. "A-Available?" she reddened as he stroked her hair. "The last night for it to be okay that I take you out like this, I mean." He explained, hugging her tighter. Hinata's eyes softened at the look on his face, and her hand moved up to touch his cheek.

"Sasori… I'm not supposed to be yours. You know that." She said sympathetically. His eyes closed, relishing in the feeling of her skin against his. So warm…

"But… do you _want_ to be mine?" he took her hand and kissed it lightly. He was asking her of something she didn't want to give to him. "I love you, Hinata. I don't think anything can change that now." He let out a small laugh of a sigh at his situation – how troublesome it was. Hinata gave him another look – one he couldn't read – but it looked to be something similar to sympathy and worry. And rejection.

Ah, there it was. That look women gave you when you were about to be faced with a big fat 'NO'.

But Hinata wasn't the kind of girl to say it _that_ way. He knew that much.

"I'm sorry." Her voice was barely above a whisper. Sasori closed his eyes, holding her now tighter than ever. He lifted her a little and made it so that she was standing on his feet. Hinata looked down in confusion, then squeaked when he started walking. "It's okay." The phrase was meant for both her previous statement and to reassure her. "I get to spend more time walking with you if I go like this." He muttered as an explanation.

"Thanks for walking me home, Sasori." She stopped at her front door, speaking softly in case her parents were still awake. "My pleasure." He said, equally soft and reaching for her hair again. He kissed the strands as they fell back to her shoulder. Her heart pounded, and he felt it as his fingertips grazed her heart. Her breath hitched, and it was in that moment that he kissed her and pressed her against her door. They stayed like that for a few minutes before Hinata pushed him away.

"S-Sasori… Please." She panted. He apologized softly before walking away with his head hung down in depression. He was quite surprised to feel Hinata's arms wrap around him halfway down the walk.

"Please don't be depressed – it would break my heart if you spent the rest of your days like that." She sobbed into his back.

_Heh. Break her heart, huh? How ironic._

Sasori, being the devious man he was, decided to take a little advantage of this moment. "Let me be in your room tonight. Then I'll be happy." It was as close to the truth as anything else he could've said. Hinata bit her lip in decision, but eventually she came down to a yes. "Just… nothing funny, okay?"

Oh, he was going to have fun.

--

"_Kyah! S-Sasori, this is exactly what I told you _not_ to do!_"

"_What, this?_"

"_AAGH – Yes!_"

"_How is this funny? I'm completely serious here. – chuckle-_"

Hinata was whispering as loud as she could at the man who was straddling her that very moment. He kept pressing kisses to places such as her cheeks, lips, arms, and neck – something she shouldn't have classified as 'funny'.

"_Besides, what's the harm with a one-night fling, huh? Deidara doesn't have to know._"

"_Are you kidding me!? Please get off!_" She started hitting him in the chest, the most useless thing to do against a vampire who's on top of you.

"_Your red face is telling me you like this._"

She slapped him in the face. He kissed her.

"_You can't possibly _not_ love this, my dear Hinata._"

He felt something wet fall down her cheek. A tear. He had made her cry. Again.

"_Aw, now what's all this for?_" Sasori rolled off of her and wiped her tears away. She rolled so that her back was facing him.

"_You know what I mean when I say 'funny stuff'!_" she sobbed softly.

"_Yes, I know. I'm sorry._" Sasori wrapped himself around her to stop her trembling.

"_Can't you let me be sexually at peace!?_" she scolded. "_You won't be 'sexually at peace' for long, you know._" He whispered to her, referring to her soon-to-be honeymoon. "_And don't you want to compare between the two of us? Who's better at the grind work, me or Deidara?_" His arms wrapped a little tighter around her, and she gave up her apparent resistance and fully relaxed against him. "_Aren't you curious?_"

Hinata clenched her hands into fists. "_In a way, I am._" She admitted, obviously ashamed. Before the smirk could even make its way onto his face, she said, "_But that doesn't mean I have to find out!_"

Instead of a smirk, a pout covered his face, and he kissed her neck softly. "_Fine, fine. You win._" This time. Hinata smiled triumphantly, able now to go to sleep with him hugging her.

--

_The bitch!_

"Sasori, you know she hates it when you sexually harass her like that!"

_She snitched! Who taught her to do that?_

"I understand that you love her too, but that's too much!"

_I was just kissing her – certainly not something to warrant Deidara's scolding!_

"Apologize right now!"

_For what? Making her feel INCREDIBLE!?_

"I'm sorry, Hinata." Sasori smiled sweetly at Hinata, who was sitting across from him on the couch. His eyes sent her a different message, however. _You TOLD on me? How elementary, my dear Hinata!_ Her look returned a small apology. _Sorry! But I think I told you that I didn't want any-_

"Hinata, are you alright now?" Hinata nodded slowly. He smiled his heart-warming smile at her, and they quickly kissed before getting back to Sasori.

"I know you won't listen, but please try not to do that again."

"Hmph."

-:-

"Hinata, am I letting Sasori get to you too much?" Deidara asked as he lay beside her on her bed. "I can make him stop, if you want." Hinata shook her head, resting it against his shoulder. "It's alright… I mean, imagine how he feels right now… He loves you very much and now you're getting married…" There was a pause as she played with the buttons on his shirt. "And he loves me too." She said it softly, as if it were a fragile vase of a phrase.

"Do you want to go with him?" Deidara wrapped an arm around her as she hugged him. "What do you mean?" She hoped he wasn't meaning – "Do you… Would you rather be with him than me?" – that. Hinata shook her head, guilty that a little uncertainty made its way onto her face.

Deidara smiled a little in understanding. "Well how about this; Do you love him too?" Hinata looked at him, her look unreadable. Deidara's small smile turned into a frown, and his arm loosened around her. "Do we need to take a break?" Her eyes watered at the look on his face.

_What a shame,_ she thought, _that this had to happen right before… the wedding._

-:-

The next night, while Sasori watched her sleep in her room, he started thinking about how last night was… In just a few words (and many actions), their feelings for each other were expressed and kept to themselves at the same time.

She got up from her bed, and Sasori flinched back, hiding in the dark and the leaves of the tree. She opened her window and called softly to him.

"Sasori-san? Won't you come inside? We need to talk."

She left the window; he waited a few minutes before hopping in and closing the window behind him. "Deidara and I are taking a break." She said quietly, obviously still troubled by what happened. "A break?" He took a half-step toward her. Her lip trembled, and her cheeks turned a light pink. "He looked so sad… I wish I didn't… But I couldn't lie to him – it'd only make it worse." She began mumbling to herself, and Sasori closed the gap between them to hug her tightly. "Wish you didn't do what?" he asked softly, soothingly, in her ear. She gripped his shirt and held him in place.

"I might have… fallen for you, Sasori-san." It was so quiet, her voice. So… disappointed. So unhappy.

His arms wrapped fully and tightly around her, and her head tilted up to avoid being squished against his chest. He pressed his lips to hers, and tears fell from her eyes. "I don't know." She whispered helplessly. To prevent her from making decisions she'd regret, he kept his actions as innocent and harmless as possible.

In the mirror, the girl in the reflection showed concerned disappointment at what she was acting out. The deceased Hinata silently cried for the small mistakes she made.

--

"Hinata, please."

"Just do it now... I've already betrayed him this much…"

"No… Hinata, please. It's not too late to go back to him."

"But I love _you_ remember?"

Sasori couldn't believe that he was the one begging to not have sex. She was putting up an impossible argument, and he felt crazy to have made it this far without nailing the board.

When he glanced in her direction, he found her unbuttoning her shirt – her pajama pants were already off, and he found it sickeningly sweet to see her Hello Kitty underwear.

He panicked.

Jesus _Christ_ she was beautiful. Any sleazy man on the street would be fucking her already. Why wasn't he?

When she reached the last button, she glanced at Sasori, who was frozen where he sat. "S-Sasori-san…?" She leaned towards him, worried.

As he thought about it, he'd never gotten a boner from a woman before. It was kinda odd how his brain translated erotic images such as Hinata. He was beginning to forget why he was resisting the house arrest bracelet in his pocket.

_No! Stay focused, stay focused. Okay, you're not fucking her to kingdom come because… Oh right, you're being the best friend here. Dei and his girlfriend had a small fight and she's just… confused. Yeah. Confused. Sure, she said she loved me, is offering herself to me, and looking at me weird because I'm horny and look like I'm high, but it's all for the greater good, right?_

"H… Hinata!" He sputtered. Hinata leaned away from him as he moved toward her. "Y-You… You don't really love me." Before she could protest, he continued. "You're just confused because I love you." _And I sexually harass you whenever we're alone._ "What if I love you back?" Hinata argued. Sasori sighed, trying to regain his composure. He wanted her to stop moving so that her shirt wouldn't reveal any more of her body than he had already seen.

"It's because I kept on… kissing you. I guess I wanted to trick you into loving me again…" His look turned distant, and Hinata reached for his hand. "I'm sorry." She whispered. "I… I should –" Sasori cut her off, starting to button up her shirt. "_You_, my dear, should show a little decency and close your shirt." She blushed, like always, and Sasori chuckled. He snuck a small kiss on her cheek.

-:-

The next day, Hinata ran into Deidara's arms. She apologized so much, confessed all the things she did wrong in their relationship (most of which weren't all that bad), and he had to constantly distract her to prevent her from hitting herself.

"Hinata, Hinata, it's okay." He repeated over and over as she sobbed into his shirt. They had to be alone in his room to sort things out. "But…! But…!!" She cried even harder, and Deidara sighed, happy that she came back yet sad that she beat herself so much about such a little argument. Heck, what they had wasn't _even _an argument.

"I forgive you, Hinata. Is that better?" he offered. She calmed down a bit, still trembling from all her sobbing. "I love you, okay? I hate seeing you cry so much like this." He chuckled a little at her adorably red cheeks. He cupped her face to cool her down. "You'll give yourself a fever if you keep this up – we'll have to postpone the wedding." She calmed down a little more as he soothingly stroked her cheeks with his thumbs. "You don't want that, do you?" She shook her head. "Good. Neither do I."

As Hinata cleaned herself up in the bathroom, Deidara walked out to talk with Sasori.

"I swear to god I didn't do anything. I _swear._" Sasori said quickly, an awkward color of pink on his cheeks. "I believe you. Thanks, Sasori. You're really my best friend – other than Hinata, of course." Deidara chuckled. "You shoulda seen her. She was going ballistic about everything. She even wanted sex – it was amazing I resisted. Did you know she wears Hello Kitty underwear? Amazingly cute." Sasori said those words as if they were a stream of curses.

"Hello Kitty… I'll have to check in on that." Deidara had an uncharacteristic smirk on his face.

Hinata stepped out of the bathroom, turning red when she saw Deidara's smirk. It disappeared quickly when he noticed her standing there, smiling sweetly and patting his lap. "Do you want to sit down, honey?" he asked. A little hesitant, she nodded, walking over to the couch. Before she could sit on the cushion beside him, Deidara pulled her onto his lap. "You're so mischievous. Hello Kitty, Hinata?" he laughed as she shifted awkwardly in his lap. "I'll have to see for myself… it'll be easy since you're wearing a skirt." Two fingers walked up her thigh, and she squeaked.

They almost forgot they were sitting in the living room – until Sasori cleared his throat. "As much as I _love_ watching you two flaunt your relationship in front of me, I'd rather you do these things in your room."

Deidara smiled at Sasori, picking Hinata up and walking to his bedroom.

Shortly after, screams of protest and evil laughter came from the room.

-:-

Auugh

Sorry for the long wait – busy and sick, sick and busy.


	18. Tipsy, Not Drunk

I HAVE A FRIEND IN HUNGARY.

YEAH.

AWESOME.

-:-

"Okay, so you got it?"

It was two days before the wedding, and Sasori sent Deidara and Hinata out for the whole day at an amusement park so he could plan the bachelor's party with a few friends. He wanted something big – big enough to overlap Hinata's party. Some of Hinata's friends were there as well.

"So we just have to get her a little tipsy?"

"Yes."

"…That's all?"

"… Yes. Tipsy. Not roaring drunk. Please."

"Fine."

"And when you're finished, have her put this on and get her un-drunk."

"Un-drunk?"

"As in – cough – Not drunk. Uh… Sober, if you will."

"Ah. Alright."

"We'll meet here… and then we quickly run over here when they realize they're alone and…"

There is soft giggling and deep laughter.

Sasori smiles.

-:-

Deidara and Hinata were sitting on a lone bench away from the people, eating the small dinner they bought. "Did you have fun today?" he asked as she sighed and leaned on his shoulder. "Yes… I'm really tired now, though." She yawned, closing her eyes. Deidara shifted so that his arm went around her, and he kissed her head. "I wonder why Sasori sent us here for the whole day…" he wondered aloud, absently stroking her shoulder. "I do too – yawn – but I'm glad he did. I wanted to spend more time with you before the wedding."

He smiled at her, noting how she kept pausing to yawn. Suddenly he picked her up bridal style and carried her down the hill and down the sidewalk heading home. "D-Deidara-san!?" she squeaked. "You think it's a little late to ask you not to add '-san' to my name?" he asked casually. Hinata swallowed, as if taking down the suffix never to be used again. "D-Deidara-s- … put me down! Please!" she felt so shy in public with him carrying her like this. "Why?" he teased. "P-People can s-see…"

"See what? How much I love you? That's not a problem, is it?" Hinata felt embarrassed to not have a come-back to this. "And if it's the fact that we're two different species, that's not much of a problem either." He paused, and Hinata had nothing to say. "I don't… _look_ like a vampire, do I? I don't _terrify_ you, do I?" He looked down at her, and he suddenly realized how awkward he was making her feel. He was about to apologize, but he knew what she would do if he did. She'd apologize as well, and the rest of the walk would be silent. "Or… If you're afraid they'd be able to see your Hello Kitty underwear…" A small smile appeared on her face, and she giggled sweetly. He smiled and kissed her forehead.

"I love you." Honestly, he felt that he said these words too often to her. He wanted her to really know how he felt about her – how _relieved_ she made him feel that he could love so much like this. She was a light in his dark life, and it was a miracle –

Ah.

A miracle.

No, she couldn't possibly be – Oh, that's right.

She was his _miracle. _

"Can I make out with you tonight?" Deidara asked suddenly, making Hinata blush. "Wh-What?" she stammered. "I don't think 'I love you' is enough to really _say_ 'I love you'. Y'know?" he squeezed her against him, and her arms wrapped around his neck. "I think 'I love you' is… Well, I think it's an expression." His silence told her to elaborate.

"Like – you have a smile, right? Well, when you love someone, you have a smile that's so much… nicer than the smile you give average people. It's… It's like, your entire being changes so that your body language around that person says 'I love you'… and when that person finally gets the message, your bodies… match…?" her arms left his neck to make unnecessary hand gestures to prove her point.

"Body language…" Why was he thinking about sex right now? "I get it… I think." Deidara kissed her lightly. "So can I make out with you tonight?" he asked, getting back to the main topic of the conversation. "Deidara-s… Deidara, you can make out with me any time you want."

Suddenly, he moved the arm he had holding her legs and let her drop, wrapping his arm around her waist. He pressed her against the wall and kissed her softly everywhere, taking special care of her lips. Her arms went around him, and he ran his fingers through her hair. When he stopped, she was back in his arms again, and e began walking. "Wh… What was…?" Hinata began, dazed. "You said anytime, right?" he chuckled a bit at her disappointed look. "Don't worry – there'll be more tonight."

She blushed, he laughed, and their walk continued.

--

Hinata's parents were out that evening, and Hinata's siblings were out on a sleepover at a friend's house. (Convenient, no?) They had the house to themselves.

"Can you believe we're getting married?" Deidara sighed as he let her stand by herself. His arms loosely hung around her waist and he kissed her neck lazily. "It's like a dream come true, isn't it?" she said, hugging him tightly around the neck. "It _is_ a dream come true."

He led her to the couch, lying on top of her and removing her jacket. "W-Wait – the curtains are…" before she could finish, the curtains slid together and the lights – suddenly – dimmed to fit the mood. "You're so shy, Hinata – " Deidara had moved incredibly fast to set the mood he wanted, and was now on top of her again. " – It's adorable." He pressed his cheek to her blazing hot one, cooling her down a bit. "I – kiss – love – kiss – you." Before he could land another kiss on her cheek, she tilted her head so that their lips met. "A lot."

"I love you too, Deidara." He smiled when she didn't accidentally stutter part of the suffix and kissed her again. "How much do you love me?" he asked. "So much that it's almost unhealthy." Hinata wrapped her arms around him and giggled. "It is. To fall in love with a vampire, that is." He kissed her a little sweeter each time he did. And whenever he kissed her sweetly, traces of a conversation slowly diminished until their lips stuck together passionately.

He picked her up, his lips still attached to hers, and brought her to her room. He almost smirked when her breathing turned into soft panting against his shoulder as he sucked on her neck. "Haha, you're getting really into this, Hina." She hit his back, since her arms were around him at the moment. "D… Don't pick on me like that." She murmured. "You're so…" he started, laughing a bit. "…adorable. I love it." Before she could yell at him some more, he kissed her deeply, completely washing the anger away from her mind.

"You know you'll get better on our honeymoon…" he whispered huskily to her. "I wanted to tease you a bit." He managed to get his hand up her skirt, and he lightly touched the new Hello Kitty design on her underwear. She squeaked loudly when she noticed, and Deidara laughed. "You really like Hello Kitty, huh?" he nuzzled her cheek, which was dark red. "I-I-I thought you wanted to sh-show me th-that you l-loved me!?" she stuttered, struggling to get into a more reserved position, but only succeeded in getting in an awkward position which involved spread legs and legs in between.

"I thought you knew that the only way I could do that was to be…" he pressed his lips to her ear. "_Inside_ you. Hm?" She gave out an embarrassed cry, and he chuckled as she buried her face in his chest. Really, he found no reason for her to be… _'embarrassed' _about it. Everyone who was in love did it; she was no different. He was no different. It was simply… a fact of life.

"Do you want me to prove my love to you, Hinata? Right now, in your room, two nights before our wedding?" he offered, partly serious, partly wanting to get that reaction from her that he loved so much. "We could certainly pull it off – what with your entire family (besides me) anywhere but home. And our friends are out on their own lives, and Sasori deciding not to stalk us today." His hands travelled up her shirt, teasing her sensitive skin. "It would be _incredible_." He sighed. Hinata, though reluctant, shook her head. She wanted their… moment… to be special. The reaction wasn't what he expected – or wanted – but he understood her silent reasoning.

"Oh well. Another time, then."

"I'm sorry, Deidara, it's just that –"

"No, no, Hinata. It's alright." He kissed her lightly. "I can wait as long as I have to."

Hinata smiled gratefully to him, and they kissed one last time before they stopped their awkward make out session.

-:-

"At the mansion?" Deidara asked, surprised. It was finally the day before the wedding, and Sasori was telling Deidara little details about the bachelor's party. They were driving out to the old Akatsuki mansion, which, hours before, was decorated professionally by all the old residents of the mansion. Deidara was blindfolded, for reasons unknown (perhaps the surprise), and both were dressed in casually formal clothing. It was almost nightfall, and as they got closer, they could hear music vibrating in the ground from the mansion.

"Uh huh. That's the only place we could all meet without having the trouble of crossing borders." Sasori explained. "'We'?" Deidara repeated. "You'll see."

Deidara found absolutely no need for the blindfold. He knew where the mansion was, and he knew what it looked like. He didn't know what the decorations were, but he'd still be surprised (or act like he was). And really, the blindfold was very poorly worn over his eyes. In one slight movement it would fall off and he could see everything that he's seen before. But he didn't move an inch, because he could tell that Sasori was really inwardly excited about whatever it was he thought he was hiding.

"We're here." Sasori called over the unbelievably loud music.

"What?"

"Get inside." Sasori pushed Deidara through those wooden doors and almost instantly they were absorbed into the party. (The blindfold had fallen off the second he got out of the car).

Deidara's night mostly consisted of drinking and dancing, hanging out and catching up with old friends who congratulated him on taking a step up and marrying Hinata. He had a great time, but in truth he felt that he didn't need a bachelor's party. He'd spent over a hundred years being 'single' and was waiting for his ticket out of the lonely world. He wouldn't miss his previous life. Not ever.

-:-

Hinata's night, however, wasn't all that different. Only the friends she was talking with she knew for a while and kept in touch with regularly. They were gathered in a karaoke room that served drinks and snacks. They were having a great time.

"It's so much fun without the guys here!" A blonde one yelled into the microphone, missing the lyrics and the beat entirely. She was standing on the table and dancing. Hinata was sitting calmly in the middle of all the roaring chaos that was her party. She was glad that everyone was having fun, and she was too. It was just that… she could be having _more_ fun with Deidara. She didn't need all this stuff right before her wedding. She just wanted to curl up in bed with him beside her, holding each other and…

"HINATA! Let's sing this one together!" The blonde, known as Ino, pulled Hinata up out of her seat and threw her a mic and a bottle of beer. "E-Eh… Ino, isn't this a bit much for just one –" Ino shoved the bottle in Hinata's mouth, and a healthy amount of the drink ran down her throat, getting her almost as drunk as everyone else around her. They began singing (very badly) to an old 80's song no one really knew.

A little after everyone had calmed down and left the karaoke bar, they spent the last few hours of the party at Hinata's house, where they talked about… well, women stuff. Guys, girls, gays, and… another noun starting with G.

"Deidara and Sasori are like, the hottest guys I know. Seriously." Ino slurred, leaning on Hinata. They both giggled helplessly at how lucky she was at having Deidara to herself. "Have you two had sex yet?" Hinata, despite being a bit drunk still, blushed darkly. "N-No… we haven't." they all laughed then, her included. "Why nooott? He's hot, you're hot, why can't things get hot too?" Ino laughed obnoxiously at her joke. "We're not… Blaagh I dunno why! We've made out a buncha times, but not that far…" Hinata took another sip of her drink, which for a second she wished wasn't alcohol.

"Well what 'bout Sasori? Oh _god_ he's friggen…" The girl squealed excitedly. Everyone else laughed in agreement. "Deidara's the nice guy – Sasori's the hotly rude one… No, it's something else." She stuttered with a different better word to describe Sasori's features.

"Omigod They're so hot!" the girls squealed.

"Now, now, ladies. Hinata's well aware that her best two guy friends used to go out before they met her. But she's so sexy she turned them both straight!" Ino burst into a fit of laughter. It spread to everyone around for a few minutes before it settled to a sudden silence as everyone recovered.

"…Oh gosh, what time's it? Sasori-so-hot said to meet when?"

"Uh… half an hour ago?"

"Haha… we should get going then, huh?"

Almost as if their drunkedness was an act, all the girls except for Hinata got up and dressed up for a proper formal party. "We're so ridiculously late." They giggled. They grabbed Hinata and slipped her into the old dress Sasori (so hot) told them to have her wear.

"Hinata? You awake, honey?" Ino shook her playfully as Hinata groaned a bit. "Where're we going now?" she asked. "Oh, just another party. Nothing big."

"Oh… okay."

Hinata drifted off to sleep during the car ride.

-:-

When the girls got there, Sasori was waiting impatiently outside. He was tapping his foot to the beat of the music, stopping abruptly when he saw the headlights heading his way.

"Finally! Jeez, I told you to get _her_ drunk, not get drunk _with_ her!" He scolded them.

"How could we resist getting drunk?" They laughed.

Hinata woke up to their loud laughter, following them out of the car. The leftover alcohol effects made her dizzy, and the vibrating ground didn't help. She eventually got herself together, noticing her surroundings and… What was she _wearing?_

As she looked at herself, she noticed that she was wearing a very old-fashioned maid's costume. The main dress was black and buttoned down to the skirt, and over it she wore an apron with ruffles. The headband matched the apron, and was placed in an odd fashion on her head. Self-consciously she adjusted it, even though she thought it weird to be wearing the costume at all.

Inside the mansion, it was as if the future finally caught up with it. There were speakers set up in six different parts of the dance floor, with the DJ up front, between the two magnificent staircases that were decorated with (dangerously placed) balloons and streamers. There were bright lights of different colors flashing everywhere to the sound of the techno dance music. The girls definitely added more life to the party, having no trouble finding partners to dance (or grind against) with.

Before Hinata could get disoriented with the music and blinking lights, an arm grabbed her and pulled her on the outskirts of the mini crowd. She was relieved to see that it was Deidara, smiling stupidly at her. He only drank a few beers, but he was already well into the 'Dude, I'm wasted' stage of being drunk. She didn't blame him, though. She was well in that stage as well.

"What're you wearing, Hina?" he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her sloppily, Hinata giggling. "A maid's costume, I guess…" She teased him by turning her face away from his lips. He kept landing on her temple or jaw. "You look a lot like…" the frustration of not being able to taste her lips brought the sanity back to him. Hinata looked at him, grinning cutely with pursed lips. "I look like…?" she purred for him to continue.

When it hit him, he turned incredibly red – very unusual (and quite near impossible) for a vampire. His hand left her waist to cover his embarrassment… or was it happiness? Was he blushing? Hinata blinked in confusion at him. "Deidara…" her hands reached up to cup his face, which was strangely still cold. "…sama."

The second the suffix left her lips, Deidara grabbed her by the shoulders and kissed her. It was almost as if… no, it couldn't be. Well, obviously it could, but still. He couldn't believe that the other Hinata was here right now, smiling at him proudly. The older Hinata was suddenly standing before him. Her hands left his face and placed themselves on his chest. "Deidara-sama… I'm so glad you're marrying Hinata-san." He nodded to her, his head brushing against hers.

"But… there's something I must tell you." Her sudden serious tone scared him a bit. He stayed silent and listened. "You cannot see me after tonight. You have to let me go. For the both of you." Unlike what he expected, he didn't feel the least bit depressed. He wasn't sad to let older Hinata go. In fact, guilty to say, he felt relieved to finally know that she could rest herself without having to worry about him getting along. This gave him more confidence – confidence that made him believe that he would be truly happy being with Hinata – now and forever.

And still, after all that reasoning and relief, a tear rolled down his cheek. Hinata smiled at him. She was sad too, not being able to see him anymore. But she wanted Deidara to… finally move on. To finally be free.

"D-Deidara? Are you alright?"

Deidara blinked in surprise, looking at the girl in his arms. Hinata, curious and worried, wiped the tears from his eyes. "Wh… Why are you… crying?" It took him a moment to reregister the sounds around him; the music, the vibrations bouncing off the walls, the odd silence that separated this room from outside… And when they did finally hit, he crushed Hinata to himself in a tight hug with surprise. "I… It's… It's okay. I'm fine." he murmured. "Just give me a moment."

Hinata, still concerned, slowly hugged him back. "Okay. Remember, I love you." Deidara smiled. "I know. I love you, Hinata."


	19. My Lovelies

My Life Would Suck Without You – Kelly Clarkson

:D

-:-

"Are you ready?"

Deidara leaned against the doorframe, waiting for his Best Man to accompany him to the altar.

"Of course I'm ready. Why wouldn't I be?"

Sasori said that in the most unconvincing tone imaginable, and Deidara sighed, a playful smile on his face. He was getting married – nothing could ruin his day.

He walked up to Sasori and pulled him up from the bed he was sitting on. "You expect me to believe that tone?" he led Sasori to the door, but stopped. "I'll meet you there?" Sasori said, his voice a little shaky. Deidara looked at him with concern. "What's up with you?" he asked. Sasori shook his head, looking like he was about to cry. "Sasori?" he leaned closer to get a better look.

"You just look… so _happy_. I feel bad that I didn't make you feel like this when we were…" Deidara smiled again. "Sasori…" Sasori looked up at him. "It'll all be okay. The past is the past, now is now. I don't care for all the wrongs you did then. Okay?" Sasori shrugged, still sulking.

Then, suddenly, Deidara pressed his lips lightly to Sasori's. He pulled away quickly. Sasori stared at him in confusion, looking absolutely surprised. "That was the only way I thought would cheer you up." Deidara shrugged, smiling. "Now will you go out there and be my Best Man?" Sasori opened his mouth to speak, but stopped. "I'll be whatever man you want." He muttered, dazed. Deidara smiled at him as he led them both to the church.

-:-

"Oh, Hinata, you looks beautiful!" Mrs. Hyuga twirled around her daughter, gushing out about every aspect of Hinata and the way she looked in her wedding dress. "The lace matches so nicely with your complexion and everything! I'm so happy that you're getting married, my dear!" she hugged him, and Hinata laughed awkwardly. "M-Mom… you're making me feel embarrassed…" she said shyly. "But Hinata-deaaarr! Deidara-san will be blown _away_ with how you look! It looks like you lost ten pounds!" Hinata spun around and half-glared at her mother. "_Mother!_" she snapped, blushing a dark red.

Ino appeared at the door, telling them that Hinata had five more minutes until the ceremony started. Excited and feeling like everyone was making too big a deal of everything, Hinata took a deep breath and looked herself over one more time in the mirror. Her dress might've been too long and she feared that she would trip. Her veil was so much longer than it should've been (from her point of view) and was afraid that the flower girls would put enough petals on the veil that it would slow her down. Maybe the dress made her look like she _gained_ ten pounds, what with all the thin layers of lace. Maybe Deidara actually didn't like makeup, and maybe she was wearing too much.

She turned abruptly, proving to herself that her skirt wasn't too long, that her veil only reached to her lower back (which didn't give any flower girls any chance to slow her down with flower petals), that she was quite comfortable with her body mass, and that her makeup wasn't overdone. She took another deep breath and followed her mother out the door and to the entrance of the church.

_This is it.  
This is it.  
This is it._

Hinata, Deidara, and Sasori all thought at the same time. The music started and Hinata began taking the few steps up through the doors. She saw the look on Deidara's face – or, rather, the color: red. She had made the vampire blush. He was also grinning beyond belief, leaning over to Sasori and muttering something to him that Sasori agreed to with a smile. That made Hinata happy, but she could only glance briefly at him before having to concentrate on her footing.

It took her a moment to realize that she was walking with her father. She looked up at Neji and he smiled back at her. "Don't trip now," he mouthed, giving Hinata an unneeded twang of fear and nervousness. She knew he was just teasing her, but still. She could feel him chuckle lightly beside her.

Before she knew it, she was at the altar, standing in front of Deidara. He looked stunned.

"_Is my makeup overdone?_" she asked him with her eyes.

"_You look perfect, my darling._"

"_I'm glad I didn't trip…_"

"_It wouldn't matter if you did._"

"…_Do I look fat in my dress?_"

"…_What?_"

Before they could continue, the priest began speaking, and in a few paragraphs of speaking, he finally said,

"Do you, Deidara…" the priest paused, forgetting that Deidara had no last name. "…Take Hinata Hyuga to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

Deidara grinned stupidly, too happy to properly portray his feelings. "I do." His voice was surprisingly calm and collected.

"And do you, Hinata Hyuga, take Deidara to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

Hinata took a deep breath, somehow afraid that she would mess up on saying two simple words. "I do…" She smiled at Deidara shyly.

"You may kiss the bride." The priest smiled at both of them. Deidara took Hinata, dipped her down and kissed her in one motion. The congregation cheered and clapped, making Hinata blush. The two walked out of the church with an entire crowd following them. "I'm gonna carry you to the car, okay?" leaving her no time to refuse, he picked her up bridal style, and the crowd cheered louder with laughter. "D-Deidara…!" Hinata squeaked, earning a small kiss to the cheek.

What was only a few minutes seemed to last an hour as the crowd practically pushed them into the limousine and closed the door. Deidara laid Hinata on the extended couch and sat with her head on his lap. She had fainted from all the laughing and cheering – and his carrying her bridal style didn't help either. It was only temporary; halfway to where they were having the reception she woke up and Deidara was there to pull her in his arms.

"Can you believe it?" he sighed, letting her lean her head on his shoulder. "Believe what?" she asked dazedly. "We're married. After so long." He kissed her cheek and she smiled. "I will believe it… it feels nice." She snuggled against him. "You know what else will feel nice? Our next step." His arms went around her waist and he kissed her a little sweeter. "O-Our h-honeymoon?" Hinata squeaked. "No… a little after we get settled _in _our honeymoon…" He slurred the words to sound husky and hot. He was.

"O-Oh." Was all she could say.

-:-

"_Why so shy? This was going to happen eventually."_

"_I-I-I know…"_

"_There's no reason to be scared… It won't hurt. I won't hurt you."_

"_I know…" _

"_Relax, Hinata, relax…"_

She woke up that morning with a start. Beside her, Deidara jumped a little in surprise. He reached over and caressed the top of her head soothingly. "Are you alright?" he asked softly. Hinata realized that she was breathing heavily and stopped. She relaxed herself with a sigh and looked back at him. "I had a dream." She whispered. "I can see that, love. What about?" She turned red, her eyes opening wide. "Uh… Uh – W-Well, you see… Um…" she stammered. Deidara chuckled.

"You're so silly, Hinata."

_Oh no… does he know what I was dreaming about? Us having SEX!? Oh, what does he think of me now? Perverted? Sickening? Oh…_

"What's with that look? It's perfectly normal." Deidara caressed her cheek and smiled. "I had the same dream not too long ago."

Hinata was beginning to wonder if they were on the same page. Deidara was a vampire, so he couldn't sleep. So that means he couldn't dream. Well, dream while sleeping anyway. This both confused and made her curious as to how he could dream of whatever he thought she dreamed.

Seeing the look on her face, Deidara laughed. "Nobody ever said vampires couldn't daydream." Hinata turned red from embarrassment. _Of course!_ She mentally slapped herself. "But goodness… to find out you dreamt what I had dreamt…" he leaned closer to her face and kissed her slowly.

"I didn't know you loved chocolate as much as I did… to actually dream about it…"

…_What?_

Chocolate.

He was dreaming of chocolate.

She was dreaming of hot sex during their honeymoon.

Is there something wrong with that?

"We must really love each other to dream about the same thing like that." He chuckled, and Hinata forced a little laugh to not seem suspicious. She was contemplating on whether to correct him or play along.

"Actually… I was…" she said without meaning to. Deidara gave her a confused look. After a little thinking, he finally got the right idea, and she turned dark red. He had to hold back from smirking, but let it through anyway. "My goodness…" he said.

"I-I-It's not my f-fault! You were talking so openly about it before and I couldn't stop thinking about it and you're being you and…" she spoke quickly so that if she said anything else to further embarrass herself, he wouldn't hear it well. Deidara shook his head, grinning. "'Me being me'? You flatter me, Hinata." He oh-so-subtly wrapped an arm around her and kept it there teasing her with kisses to the cheek, neck, and shoulder. She got a lot out of it, and before she could get any more, he pulled away.

"Well, we should start planning, huh? Come now, take a shower and clean up. We'll discuss where we're going over breakfast." He hopped up, smiling and opening the curtains to let some sunshine into the room. Hinata felt her privacy being violated by the warm rays. Deidara grinned at her as she dazedly got ready for her day.

-:-

As the two stepped into the air plane, Hinata's family and Sasori were waving them good bye. Hinata waved back as Deidara practically carried into the plane. The doors of the plane closed, and when Hinata glanced one last time at her family, she noticed that Sasori was gone.

"You alright?" Deidara asked as he sat down next to her. She nodded. "Where'd Sasori go?" she asked. Deidara shrugged. "We won't see him for the next two weeks. It's just the two of us this time." He wrapped an arm around her. She giggled, moving to kiss his cheek. He tilted his head so their lips touched instead.

A couple hours into the flight, Hinata began yawning every other minute. "It's a long flight, so you can sleep if you want." Deidara said, beginning to prepare a comfortable spot for her to sleep. "What'll you do?" she asked, leaning into his arms. "Watch you?" he chuckled as he kissed her head. "Haha… Very funny…" she dozed off quickly, and Deidara's arms wrapped automatically around her. It was times like this that got him thinking about what they were going to do after their honeymoon. After the baby was born. Turning her into a vampire was the main worry of his life right now.

He realized something then. Did Hinata want to have his baby because she knew she might die? Did she plan on leaving a part of both of them in the form of a child in case she died when he turned her into a vampire? So that even when she was gone, she'd still 'be there'?

He stroked her face lovingly, smiling a little. Even if that wasn't the case, he'd still love her as unconditionally as he did. "I love you," he mouthed, kissing her head.

Hinata began waking up just as the plane was landing. "Morning." Deidara teased, helping her sit up back in her seat. "Is it really?" she looked out the window. Pitch black. He chuckled. "Might as well be; you slept the whole five hours." Hinata blushed in embarrassment. "O-Oh! I did? S-Sorry!" She squeaked. He stroked her back absently and laughed. "It's alright. This way you'll be able to stay up _all night…_" he chuckled lightly, still keeping his husky tone. "S-S-So soon!?" she squealed in surprise.

"_We are getting ready to land. Everyone please gather your things."_

Deidara picked Hinata up and helped her stand, while grabbing their bags.

--

As the two were escorted to their hotel room, Hinata kept looking over her shoulder. She felt like they were being watched.

"Something wrong?" Deidara asked quietly as the (for some reason irritable) hotel employee led them to their room. He was grumbling to himself incoherently as he dragged Deidara's luggage bag along the rug floor. "If it's him, don't worry – I'd protect you if he were any threat. He's just cranky." Hinata shook her head. "That's nice, Deidara, but…" She lowered her voice and Deidara leaned a little towards her. "I feel like we're being followed." Deidara wrapped an arm around her. "It's alright. I'll protect you." He smiled reassuringly at her, and before she could smile back the irritable hotel employee grumbled for them to ask someone else for assistance if they needed any.

The door slammed closed, and after a short silence, Deidara muttered, "Well he was nice." Hinata giggled.

They unpacked and got settled, turning the TV on to make things comfortable. Hinata and Deidara were resting on the couch and watching.

"I'm gonna go get changed in the bathroom. I'm kinda tired…" Hinata stood up as Deidara nodded, flipping through a few more channels.

When the door to the bathroom closed, Deidara heard the beep of the door of the suite opening. Alert, he turned the TV's volume down low and peered from the corner of his eye to the small hallway leading to the entrance. There was a small shadow, and he slowly stood up to investigate – and make sure that he didn't get to Hinata.

As he got closer, the person looked more and more… familiar. The hair color, the body build, the way the person moved… He was standing beside the bathroom door, and before he could touch the handle, Deidara ran up to the man. But before anything happened, the man was gone.

Hinata stepped out of the bathroom upon hearing the bumping sound on the wall. "D-Deidara? Are you alright?" she was halfway into her pajamas and just finished brushing her teeth. "Are _you_ alright, Hinata?" Deidara asked, concerned. Hinata observed herself, turning around and curving her back to look behind her. "I feel fine. What about you? Did something scare you?" He let his guard down a little at her giggle. "No, nothing scared me. But I was worried."

She gave him a puzzled look. "I thought someone got into the suite. I went to check if you were alright, but I saw a shadow by your door. I ran to it, but missed and hit the wall instead. Pretty silly, huh?" Hinata backed into the room a little, looking frightened. "You're scaring me now! A shadow in our room? What if this place's haunted?" she whined cutely. "Not as haunted as…"

Deidara paused, taking a good look at what Hinata was wearing. He turned a light pink, and Hinata examined herself again. "What's wrong?" She twirled around, lifting her loose lingerie a little to reveal her pale skin and matching underwear.

"Deidara?" She said, worried. He reached for her arm and pulled her out of the bathroom. He snaked his arm around her and brought his face close to hers. "What… are you wearing?" He had never thought Hinata to be the 'lingerie type', and was quite surprised – and aroused – to find her wearing said lingerie right now. While they were alone. In a hotel room thousands of miles away from anyone who could possibly judge them – him – for having their way. With each other.

"W-Well," she began. Right now just about everything about her – not just the clothes – was beginning to turn him on. Just hearing her talk made him want to just fish out her words with his tongue and…

She was silent. Why did she stop talking? Her lips… he could feel her lips moving, but no words came out. Instead, a small stifled moan came out, and it melded with his own low groan.

Oh. He was kissing her. Pretty roughly, he might add. He should lighten it a little…

Her arm reached around his neck and pulled him closer. Scratch that first idea. He slipped off his jacket, leaving it on the floor as he led her to the bedroom. She moaned when he left her lips for her neck, sucking lightly. His hand travelled up her lingerie top, brushing against her breast. She trembled slightly, so his legs fastened themselves to her hips, holding her still.

"How do you take this thing off…?" he asked, too focused on other things to figure it out. She guided his hand to her chest, where a lace string was coiled through holes in the fabric. Grinning, he slowly pulled the string as he teased her skin with his lips. When the last of the string was about to pop out, the door to the room opened and the light turned on.

Deidara grimaced.

Hinata blushed and squeaked in embarrassment.

Sasori smiled warmly, carrying luggage and wearing a tourist's cap.

"Hello, my lovelies."

-:-

Deidara: SASORI YOU COCK BLOCKER.

Sasori: Cock Blocker? More like Cock BRINGER.

-dies from the lameness of the joke-


	20. My Angel

"'Cause there's beauty in the breakdown…"

Let Go – Frou Frou

I love music XDD

-:-

"No."

"No?"

"Absolutely not."

"Why not?"

"Look, Sasori, I'll pay for your ticket back home – I'll pay _you_. Just get out of here."

"Aww, but its two whole weeks without _both_ of you. I can barely stand one of you leaving, but _both!?_ You're asking too much right there, mister!"

Deidara sighed in frustration. Hinata was wearing the jacket Deidara threw on the floor an hour ago. She didn't want to show her annoyance, but she couldn't help it.

"Sasori… How did you get here, anyway?"

"By plane, of course."

"You know what I mean."

Sasori grinned. "I stowed away in the luggage cabin during your flight."

_That explains why he disappeared as we left…_ Hinata thought irritably.

"Sasori, that was a _seven hour flight._ You're freaking insane!" Deidara yelled. "Anything to be with you two." Sasori replied sweetly. Deidara sighed in annoyance, and Hinata wrapped an arm around him. "I-It's okay, Deidara. It's only the first night –" Deidara groaned in agony. The first night of _fourteen._ He wasn't even sure if Sasori would leave – which was probably a definite no.

Sasori sighed, shrugging. "Fine, fine. I'll just book a room somewhere else." He said in defeat. "Try a different country, please." Deidara muttered. "Dei-Dei, come on. I'm sorry I ruined your first night here and stopped you from hitting it off with Hinata. Okay?" On top of intruding on a date that was supposed to be completely them, he was being sarcastic and rude. Deidara almost cursed under his breath.

"Sasori. Get out. Now." Deidara stood up abruptly, surprising Sasori to his feet. "Okay, okay. Don't kill me." Sasori took his bags and put on his hat. "I'll see you around." He huffed, heading for the door. "Good _night_, you two." He said before the door slammed closed.

There was an almost comforting silence. Hinata yawned artificially, standing up. "I… I'm gonna go to bed." She whispered. "Alright. Good night, dearest." He kissed her cheek and let her walk back to the bedroom.

Deidara looked to the bedroom door and to the door to the suite. He knew Sasori was sitting out there in the hallway, and that if he ignored it until the morning he'd see him there still. Sighing in self defeat, he began setting up the fold out bed from the couch. When it was all set up, he unlocked the door and let Sasori wander in as he pleased.

"Lock the door when you come in."

Sasori silently walked in, careful not to make much noise as he set himself up in the living room.

Deidara grunted a short 'good night' and stalked into the bedroom, closing the door and locking it behind him.

"You're so kind, Deidara." Hinata said, reading a book under dim lamplight. She was still in the undone lingerie, her bottom half under the covers. "I didn't know you wore glasses." Deidara said, removing most of his clothes so he could lie comfortably in bed. "I don't. These don't have lenses and make me feel smart." She giggled cutely, and he crawled into bed next to her. His arm wrapped around her waist. "I'm sorry about Sasori." He said, making her put the book down and the glasses off. "It's okay. I just didn't expect it, y'know?" Hinata smiled. "Tell me about it." He chuckled.

Hinata hugged him before lying down and under the covers. "Do you want me to grab you a shirt? You're still wearing your…" he toyed with the opening in the black lace. "I couldn't find the string. I'm too tired to look for it though; and you don't have to get me a shirt. I'll be alright…" She yawned. "Well, I'm afraid that if you stayed the way you are now, I'd have to do _something_, no matter who barges into the room." He kissed her neck soft enough to tickle her. She giggled. "I still find no need for a shirt." He smirked and kissed her lips, then her neck, then over her shoulder. "If you wear something this nice tomorrow night, something might happen."

"Good night, Deidara." Hinata sighed, smiling. "Good night, love." He replied.

-:-

When he made sure that Hinata was fast asleep, Deidara walked out of the bedroom and into the living room, where Sasori was watching TV with the volume very low.

"Hey." Deidara sat beside him on the bed. Sasori scooted closer to him, leaning his head on Deidara's shoulder. He shrugged him off. "We're still mad at you." He grunted. "Aw… I told you I'd leave." Sasori whined. "You were _outside the door._ What was I supposed to do?" Deidara ran a hand through his hair. "Let that cranky busboy escort me to the door?" Deidara scoffed. "Yeah. Right."

The show that was on happened to be about two gay men struggling to find each other in the homophobic world they live in. "I love this show." Sasori said, grinning. "Hm." Deidara grunted. Sasori muted the television. "If you weren't here to watch, what's up?" he asked.

"Were you that thing I saw earlier today? The shadow near the bathroom?" Deidara asked. "Who else _could_ it have been? Sasori inquired, smirking. "The undead spirits of the underworld out to get my wife. Why? Who else _could_ it be?" Deidara mocked. Sasori rolled his eyes. "You know I never mean harm." He said. "Not unless you mean to." Deidara responded smartly. Sasori paused to think. "That's true."

Deidara stood up and headed back to the bedroom. "Good night?" Sasori said curiously. "Sort of. I'll just be watching Hinata sleep again."

"Ooh, I love that show, too. I don't think this TV has it though – can I come?" Deidara rolled his eyes this time, stepping in the room. "She's still wearing her… clothes. I'll get her a shirt – hold on." The door was left open. "I don't mind." Sasori said, grinning. "I do." Deidara snapped back.

He slipped the shirt over her head and poked her arms out of the sleeves. She cuddled right back into bed, subconsciously snuggling close to him. He wrapped his arms around her automatically as Sasori stepped into the room. Silently, he pulled up a chair and sat at the edge of the bed. He frowned at the shirt covering her obviously revealed chest and body. She shifted under his gaze. "Man…" Sasori said softly. "You really need to fuck her quick – I might take over." Deidara shot him a glare, calling him a stupid bastard who forgot he interrupted the whole 'fucking' process.

"You know, I think I'll just wait outside." Sasori stood up, took one long glance at Hinata, and left the room.

-:-

The next morning, Deidara went out to the living room to see if Sasori was still there. He was almost happy to find that he had fixed the bed back into a couch and cleaned up a bit after himself. Sasori took all his stuff – the bag and his hat – and left the suite, locking the door behind him. He also left a note on the counter in the kitchen.

_Deidara and Hinata,_

_Sorry for barging in like that last night. You two were really getting into it and I ruined it. Kinda mean, huh?_ _Well, all apologies aside, I'll tell you where I changed location to. I moved to a hotel a few miles from where you are. Just call me if you wanna talk._

_;) Sasori_

Deidara smiled a little. _At least he had the decency to leave. _He thought.

Hinata walked out of her room, yawning and stretching into Deidara's open arms. He kissed her good morning. "Where'd Sasori go?" She asked, sitting at the table. "He left." He smiled happily. "Oh. He found a place to stay, right?" he nodded and sat beside her. "That's good." She said softly. "Uh huh. Now I have you all to myself." Deidara kissed her again. "What do you want for breakfast?" he asked.

"I don't know. I'm not hungry yet I guess. Let's go somewhere – I can eat on the way."

"Sure."

--

The door closed itself as the two stormed in, arms around each other and lip almost permanently conjoined. She removed his jacket and he took care of hers. They tumbled over into the hallway where he pressed her against the wall, kissing her heatedly with his hands all over. Every time he touched a sensitive spot she let out a slow groan, her body trembling with excitement. He managed to get her shirt off, and all the places he touched before became all the more… touchable. But he didn't use his hands – he used his lips. He kissed her throat, her collarbone, her shoulders… she was going crazy. She made him kiss her lips again and he brought her into the bedroom.

He pushed her onto the bed, taking off his own shirt as well. Her arms wrapped around his neck as he lowered himself to continue kissing her where he left off – her chest. His fingers traced her side lightly, teasing the hem of her pants. "Hinata…" He sighed. His words were expressed with his actions as he finally began to take off her-

_RING RING RING RING_

_Ignore it,_ Deidara thought, recognizing the ring tone immediately. It was Sasori's phone. The one he forgot in their suite. The one he forgot to put on _silent._

_RING RING RING RING_

And he added the delightful feature of it getting louder every set of rings. After a few seconds it became too loud to ignore. What a turn off.

"Fuck, Sasori!" Deidara got off of Hinata, apologizing under his breath. Hinata sat up, also glaring at the phone as Deidara answered it.

"You'd better be fucking dying!" he yelled into the receiver.

"Woah, who shoved a beehive up _your_ ass?" Sasori answered into the phone.

"That's _two times_ Sasori! Two! You're a fucking mess!" Deidara scolded mercilessly.

"Two times? What are you – Ooh, you two were trying to – Ahaha, I get it! Sorry, dude. But guess what?" Sasori said excitedly.

"What, you're jumping off the nearest cliff?" Deidara said with fake enthusiasm.

"Haha you wish." – "I do."

"Well I found a comic book with our names in it. Isn't that sweet? The characters even look the sa-"

The phone was thrown across the room. Sasori heard the crashing noises.

"DUDE Did you break my phone!? No way! I'm using the hotel's phone right now – Gaw, Deidara, come on!"

Deidara threw a pillow at it as well, muffling Sasori's voice. He knew it was too late to save it this time, so he just gave Hinata a long kiss good night before walking to the phone and – haha – stomping on it like there was no tomorrow. Then he went back to Hinata and sat at the end of the bed, knowing she really didn't make any action to get back to bed. She crawled over the bed to sit beside him.

"I'm sorry, Hinata."

"It's alright, Deidara. You can't help it."

"But Sasori's being so… So out of control! Immature!" He shook his head and rubbed his head.

"Sasori's having a hard time, too." Deidara looked at her. "The one he's – erm – slept with for a long time is sleeping with someone else now. I think that's bothering him a lot." Hinata took his hand and patted his lap. "Cut him a little slack."

"But we had our whole _life_ planned out! You'd have our baby and then I'd turn you into a vampire and then we'd both live happily ever after!" Deidara whined, leaning back until he was lying down – taking her with him. "How could you not include Sasori into the picture? He was like your _wife_ before I came along." This was true, he had to admit. "And you do love him still. I can tell." She smiled and tapped his nose. "That's how complicated our relationship is. That's how it's going to _be._ Of course Sasori's going to annoy us for doing this. He still loves you."

There was a clapping sound and fake sobbing. The two looked at the door and saw Sasori bending down to pick up the remains of his phone. "I'm sorry I got you so angry, Deidara." He said softly, walking towards them. Deidara grimaced. "What are you doing here?" he asked coldly. Hinata patted his arm in warning to be nice.

"I came to get my apparently broken phone. I hadn't realized my interfering caused you two so much trouble. I'm sorry." He looked down, looking truly sorry. He was. "How much did you hear, Sasori?" Hinata asked. "Well… I guess I am out of control…" he glanced at Deidara. "And I really do have a problem with you two doing it because… Well, me and Deidara did go at it a lot." He moved to lay down beside them. "Can I talk too?"

The three were on their bed, talking, reminiscing, until dawn, where only two of them were awake. When she fell asleep, which was around 3, Deidara moved her so that she was comfortably under the covers. Sasori was on one side, Deidara on the other. Periodically, Deidara leant down to kiss her head.

"What an angel, huh?" Sasori smiled, stroking her hair away from her face.

Deidara smiled as well, nodding in agreement. "Yeah. My angel."

-:-

WELL-DESERVED EXPLANATION:

Okay. So, the computer i was working with this on lost its internet connection entirely, leaving me no access to updating whatsoever. I was planning on waiting until it got fixed again, but i had no idea when that would be, so i used a flash drive to put it on the computer WITH internet and...

PLEASE ACCEPT MY HUMBLEST APPOLOGIES.


	21. Alive

Here we go…

-:-

Phones off?

Yes.

Doors closed and locked?

Yes.

Curtains closed?

Yes.

Bed made - only to be rumpled up again later?

Totally.

Sasori an ensured five miles away, cell phone replaced and in his pocket as he tours the city and beaches?

Hope so.

So the night is complete, exempt from the near future? Perfect.

He pressed her against the wall, taking care to lock the door behind them. He was so excited that he had to at least slip in a few words about this night's predestined success. "I even disabled the phones." he sighed wistfully, pressing his lips against her neck. "That's great, Deidara…" Hinata said softly, her arms wrapping around him.

He brought her to the bed, gently pushing her down and crawling on top of her. By then he had slipped off both their tops and was working on her skirt. She began panting as he sucked on her sensitive skin. Deidara felt great. Amazing. This was the night.

The night was all theirs.

-:-

"Deidara…" Hinata sighed the next morning.

"Yes?" Deidara answered.

"Last night was… Amazing." Her hand slipped into his, their fingers interlacing.

"_You're_ amazing." A cheezy line, he had to say. Both had heard the line many times in movies and TV shows. They both laughed a little. Deidara slipped an arm around her bare waist and kissed her shoulder.

She blushed as he began whispering all the things she apparently did last night. "You were so responsive. Everything I did you liked - I liked that." He laughed and kissed her cheek. "I love you." She giggled and kissed his cheek.

Deidara and Hinata (and occasionally Sasori) enjoyed their honeymoon to the very end, and when they came back they gently broke the news that Hinata was pregnant to the people back home. Most were shocked, but they were all generally happy for the two of them, despite the worries of how the child would turn out.

The day finally came when the delivery had to be made. Deidara became one of the few people who survived their wives' beating as she gave birth. Barely.

To their surprise, she gave birth to twins, one boy and one girl. Yuki and Tsuki. And it was a few days after Hinata left the hospital that she and Deidara were aware of their next step.

"They're absolutely beautiful." Deidara said as the two babies slept in their crib. Hinata stood beside him, her head leaning on his shoulder. "Twins." she sighed, smiling. Deidara's arm wrapped around her and he kissed her lips.

"I think we have to start thinking of our next step pretty soon." They were now sitting in the living room, resting on the couch. "Yes… I know."

The two began planning then. The twins, Yuki and Tsuki, would stay with Sasori during the whole process. Deidara would have Hinata on the bed, as comfortable as possible, and when the moment was right, he'd bite her. The venom would spread through her and, as the burning continued, he'd lay there, beside her until the whole thing finished.

It took Deidara an entire month to gain the courage to do this.

He thought of how much it would hurt. How high the risks were. How much he'd miss her if he fucked up. But it was his last thought that convinced him to carry through. He thought of how happy the four (or five) of them would be, together, forever.

Tsuki and Yuki were dropped off at Sasori's place and the two drove back to their house. Deidara walked slowly, as if his speed would affect the end result. As if on the way they'd change their minds. He glanced back at Hinata, who smiled reassuringly at him. When they reached the bedroom, he closed and locked the door behind them. And it was then that he realized that this was it. All his fears resurfaced in his brain and he tensed up. His thoughts beat him mercilessly, to no end.

His salvation was Hinata's hand reaching up to cup his face. He stared at her for the longest time and pulled her into his arms.

"It'll be fine -"

"I'm so scared, Hinata."

Silence.

"It's only been a month. You've only spent a month with our kids. They're so attached to you already. I've _been_ attached to you. What am I supposed to do if I lose you? If I _kill_ you?" He kept kissing her face; cheeks, eyes, nose, lips… She rested her head on his shoulder. "I'm attached to all of you. I love all of you." He relaxed a little in her arms. "You know why this isn't going to fail?" she asked him to distract the thoughts she knew clouded his head.

The thoughts that started to cloud his mind weren't second thoughts - it was his sudden undying thirst for blood. And he was scared.

"Because you love me. And I love you. You love Yuki and Tsuki. You love us very much."

He heard her words, kind and warm. Just like her blood.

"It'll hurt a lot, I know. But you won't let it be for long."

He began pushing her to the bed. He became more aware of the blood pulsing under her skin. Rationality wrestled with pure instinct.

_Don't suck._

_Don't suck._

_Don't suck._

_Don't suck._

_Don't fuck up._

He gave her one last, long kiss before his teeth dove into her throat.

-:-

He watched, her blood trailing from his lip, as she expressed muted agony. The venom spread fast through her - he could see her body convulse between life and death. He watched.

All he could do was watch.

-:-

She lay still for a very long time. Her heart stopped beating, and her breath was gone. Her warmth was gone, and her eyes were closed.

He was scared to death.

She looked dead.

She looked like a vampire.

She began to wake.

Deidara leaned forward carefully, wary to give her room to breathe. "Hinata…" He whispered. "Wake up…?" his hand cupped her face. Her hand shot up to cover his. She began to sit up, and he helped her.

"Deidara…" she said, her voice hoarse and dry. She sounded thirsty.

_Oh god. She is._

He scrambled up, taking care to lay her down first before rushing down to get the twins' blood drink supply. He quickly brought her a glass and she gulped it down quicker than he anticipated. He ran down to get her more, but she stopped him.

"I-It's fine." she sat there blankly for a few moments. "Am I… Alive…?" She whispered. Deidara gave her a worried look, then nodded. "In a sense… you are." he walked to her, gathering her frail form in his arms. She weakly wrapped her arm around him. "See…? I told you… it'd be fine…" It was almost as if she were falling asleep - Ah. She did. Was that alright? Possible even?

He lay her down and pulled the covers over her chest. Then he called Sasori.

"Is she alright?" Sasori asked when he picked up.

"She's asleep right now." Deidara replied, confused.

"Oh okay - wait, what? I thought you turned her into a vampire."

Deidara laughed at how common it was to hear that Hinata was asleep. "I did. She's very weak right now… maybe she needs… rest?"

There was a rustling noise and Sasori's protests in the background.

"Daddy." a soft voice said. A girl's voice.

"U-Um… S-Sasori? What…" Deidara's eyes widened.

"No, Daddy. Tsuki."

"Tsuki… Tsuki!? Tsuki! What are you - who taught you… When… Um… What!?" Deidara's mind began racing with thoughts that yelled, _IMPOSSIBLE!!_

"What happened to Mommy? Is she alright?" Tsuki asked in a worried tone.

"How are you talking? Tsuki? - I mean, Mommy's alright. She's sleeping right now." Deidara replied awkwardly. "Okay. Here's Uncle Sasori now."

"…"

"…"

Both were speechless.

"Is… Is Yuki talking too?" Deidara asked.

"U-Uh huh… They're talking about… cooking. Uh… Wh-What they want for dinner. Lasagna." Sasori reported.

"Sasori. They're a month old. They're not even walking yet." Deidara said, suddenly unsure.

"Actually…"

There was a small sound of feet hitting the floor. Walking.

"C-Could you bring them here? Please?" Deidara requested softly.

About ten minutes later, Sasori's car pulled into the driveway. Deidara opened the front door, waiting behind the frame to see for himself if his month-old children could walk in. Tsuki walked in first. She was taller than he left her hours ago. Her hair had grown longer and darker - She looked like Hinata's five year old twin. She was wearing a ribbon and a questionable black dress. Yuki walked in, also taller, wearing dress shorts and a blazer with a black shirt underneath. Then Sasori, staring in wonder at the two.

"Hinata's gonna freak." they both said.

-:-

HALF-ASSED FOR A REASON.

Okay, so, the kids… Tsuki and Yuki… They're half vampire children who are prone to rapid growth… hope that makes you more confused… x.x;


	22. Yuki and Tsuki

Okay… Soo…

-:-

Hinata was still asleep. He let the twins go up to see her and told them not to make any noise. He didn't hear them walk up behind him in the computer room.

"Daddy -" They said in unison.

"AAGH!" Deidara fell out of his chair.

After a short pause and a sidelong glance at each other, Yuki and Tsuki told him that Hinata had woken up and requested his presence. He presumed their vocabulary was because they got a hold on Sasori's reading books.

Deidara made his way up the stairs and into the bedroom where Hinata was.

"I wasn't asleep that long, was I?" she asked jokingly. "No, just a day, my dear. How are you feeling?" he leaned to her and kissed her forehead. "Alright. I don't feel well enough to get up and walk though. Is that okay?" Deidara nodded furiously. "Of course, dear. I'll watch the twins while you're resting. Is there anything you need right now?" Hinata thought for a few minutes then, uneasily, said, "I'm actually a little… thirsty."

"Oh. Thirsty, of course. I'll get you a glass of water right away -"

"No, Deidara, I mean… Thirsty." She cleared her throat. It took him a minute, but when he realized, he panicked. "Oh! Oh, okay, oh, alright, uh, I mean, uh… Yes! Right away! I'll be right back!" He darted out of the room and almost instantly came back with a glass of red liquid. She gulped it down as if she hadn't drunken anything in days. "We need to buy a special supply for me now, huh?" she said thoughtfully, giving him back the glass. "Of course." he was beginning to wonder why she wasn't questioning about her children.

"Oh, and Deidara?" Speak of the devil. "What… Happened to Yuki and Tsuki?"

Deidara, for some reason, wanted to avoid eye contact with her. He felt guilty. But for what? "Well, I was going to research on that but…" Oh Yeah. The twins are the first ever vampire children. Ever. "But Yuki and Tsuki are… Well, like you, they're the first ever vampire children. Only you're not a child. Just the first vampire woman to… Aagh." Why was it suddenly so awkward to talk to her? He observed her carefully, seeing if he could find the answer on her face.

Then he saw it. She became even more… beautiful - if that was even possible. Her beauty could be compared to that of a goddess's. It was strange how vampire genes could do that.

She caught him staring at her and she smiled, her beauty radiating off her face. "Is there something wrong?" She asked. He imagined her blush creeping onto her cheeks. The blush that he would miss so dearly. He caressed her face gently, smiling a little before he kissed her softly. Then he kissed her again and again. When he stopped he felt embarrassed to have forgotten what they were talking about.

"Our kids? They're a month old and they look five." Hinata prompted. "Oh. Yes, I remember. I guess… in my professional vampiric opinion, our children are half vampire and therefore… for reasons unexplained… are subjected to rapid growth through both their bodies and mind." Deidara said in an attempt to sound professional. "Just like… erm… when we're turned into vampires, we grow to our maximum height and explains a part of their condition…?" He was now deep in thought, and after a couple minutes they heard a knocking on their bedroom door.

Sasori walked in with the twins in tow. "Hinata, dear! Are you well?" he said in a melodramatic tone. Hinata laughed and nodded. "I am, thanks for asking." Deidara cleared his throat, and continued his thought-out analysis. "So, to explain their growth, I have concluded that the two are to grow to the height they were meant to reach before they stop growing. I can't explain their knowledge... but if someone else wishes to share their input on the situation..." He glanced expectantly at Sasori, who _happened_to be in charge of the twins during the alleged 'growing'. Sasori promptly avoided his gaze. "I was in the kitchen for a couple minutes, and when I got back they were reading books from my shelf and four feet tall. I kinda freaked out."

Hinata nodded, laughing when Deidara's look turned into a glare. "I don't mind our children reading." she assured, smiling. Deidara relaxed a bit. "Well," he stood up, "I'm going downstairs to ask the -er- kids questions. Maybe they're hungry." He hurried down the stairs, and Sasori followed, stopping at the door. "Yell if you need anything." he winked at her and left, closing the door.

Hinata looked around the room dazedly, feeling like everything was new. Her arms ran over the sheets, and her back pressed against the headboard. She reached for that stress ball she'd use to calm herself while she was pregnant. The ball burst when she gripped it slightly. It made her jump; more awake than before. She'd have to test her newly acquired strength. The sand ran through her fingers... and onto the clean sheets below. "Oh. That won't do." she said aloud to try her voice out alone. Her voice changed a bit. It was more... peaceful. Serene. She slid out of bed and walked around, catching a glance of herself in the mirror. She stared at herself, feeling her slightly messed up hair, her pale skin, and thought about what Deidara might've thought when he first saw her.

"I guess this means you're okay enough to walk." Arms wrapped around her, the familiar voice ringing in her ears. Her lover's skin wasn't cold like she remembered it. It seemed... warmer? She knew better than to think that vampires could get warm. She had gotten colder. Deathly cold. And Deidara was the same temperature. "I-I guess." She said softly, still getting used to her voice. "Thats good. The kids are downstairs with Sasori. Do you want to join us?" Deidara offered, gracefully walking her to the door. Before she set foot outside, she realized that she must look terrible, what with her blood stained shirt and messed up hair.

She wanted a shower.

"Um... I think I'll shower first." Did vampires need to shower? What an odd question. She was sure they did, otherwise they'd smell like blood or other 'things' all the time. But Deidara always smelled nice to her.

Deidara nodded. "I want to talk to you, too. Can I come?" he asked. "Of course you can, Deidara." Hinata said quickly, pulling him to the bathroom. He sat on the closed toilet lid as she undressed. She stopped when she saw a purple-ish red mark on her neck. "The bite," he said when he saw her touching the mark. Hinata slid her hand away from it, then looked at him. "It'll heal, I suppose. It doesn't hurt, does it?" he asked, standing up to get a better look. She shook her head. "Its fine." She continued undressing and stepped in the - warm? - shower.

He let her get settled in the water before talking. "How do you feel?" he asked. "Different." she replied. He laughed. "Do I feel different against your skin?" he continued. She nodded, then remembered that he couldn't see her. "Yes," she said aloud. "You feel... warmer?" She sounded unsure on purpose. "You got colder. We're about the same temperature now." Deidara observed. Hinata ran her hands through her hair. She enjoyed the water flowing on top of her. "Do you think you can adjust to this?" he asked. "I... I hope I can. If you'll help me." she said thoughtfully. "Of course, my dear. I love you." Hinata stopped her shower and stepped out to wrap a towel around herself. Deidara kissed her cheek. "You're still my love, no matter what species you are. Remember that." She smiled and leaned up to kiss him.

After Hinata got dressed, he and Hinata walked downstairs slowly, Sasori waiting cautiously at the bottom. "Glad you could make it, Hinata!" he grinned at her as they went to the kitchen.

"Mother!" Yuki and Tsuki ran up to Hinata and hugged her tightly. Deidara wrapped his arms around all three of them, noting that they had gotten another inch taller. "Have you eaten?" Hinata asked, smiling at the twins. They nodded. "Was Uncle Sasori good to you while I was sleeping?" The twins led her to a chair and slid a plate of food to her. She kindly refused it, finding that she had no appetite. "Yes, Mother. Are you feeling well? You're not going to eat?" Tsuki asked, concerned. Yuki held the same worried look as she. Hinata glanced at Deidara and then back at the twins. "Mommy's a vampire now. Do you know what that means?" the two shook their heads slowly. "Well, it means that I don't need to eat. It also means that I'll feel a bit colder and paler from now on." she placed a hand on both their shoulders. "Alright?" The twins nodded in understanding, hugging their mother.

Sasori smiled at the happy family.

-:-

"Where do babies come from?"

It had been a week since Hinata became a vampire. Also a week since the twins began growing every minute. They were the size of 16-year-olds when they sat down with their parents in the living room asking about how babies came to be.

Deidara and Hinata glanced at each other. Deidara began grinning, holding back laughter.

"Sex." he answered flatly. The twins, puzzled, tilted their heads to the side in unison. Hinata hit Deidara's lap and gave him a look. "Babies are born from their mothers. They are made in the womb," She gestured to her stomach. "And after the baby's done... uh..." Deidara subtly nudged her to go on. "Uh... cooking," Deidara almost laughed out loud. Hinata felt herself almost blush in embarrassment. Almost. "When the baby's done developing, it gives its Mom a hard time to get out of her tummy." The twins nodded slowly in unison, still holding their confused looks.

"Can you give us a demonstration?" Yuki asked. Hinata, this time, felt her face grow warm. Deidara smiled maniacally. "Weell..." He slowly pushed Hinata down on the couch so that he was on top. "You see, Yuki, us men have things in-between our legs called (_______). When we see something extremely stimulating, such as your mother here, we get certain urges that make our (_______) hard. So, only when you're happily married, you take your wife and -" He made almost childish obscene gestures to Hinata, who looked absolutely embarrassed with Deidara's straight-forwardness. "Now your mother with explain the woman's part of the story."

"D-Deidara..." Hinata started, not wanting to say what was on her mind. "W-Well, Tsuki, dear, women like us have different... things than men do. We have an opening between our legs called a... A..." Hinata couldn't get the word out, so Deidara said "A (______)."

"Right. So, when a man has certain urges, he takes his wife and inserts his..."

"(_____)"

"...into her..."

"(______)"

"Right. And when his blank is inserted into a woman's blank, nine months later a baby comes out."

"'A' baby? Only one?" Tsuki asked. "Well, sometimes there's the blessing of two babies at one time." Hinata answered. "Like you two." she smiled.

"But you two are much too young to be thinking about that. Take your time, meet people, and when you feel you've met the one, bring him or her to us." Deidara said, grinning.

"Um... Okay. Thanks, Mom and Dad." Tsuki led Yuki out of the living room and back to their own room to discuss the things they just learned. Deidara and Hinata watched them until they were out of ear shot.

"Well that was _not_how I expected telling the twins about sex." Hinata said. Deidara shrugged. "At least we didn't feed them that stupid stork story. It was for the best." He patted Hinata on the back, kissing her cheek. "I... suppose."

-:-

"Okay, that part of our 'Super-Normal-Childhood-Routine' is over. What's next?" Tsuki moved the mouse on their computer to remove the screen saver. They were on a website that listed the many things one has to go through to have a normal childhood. Asking where babies came from was number one.

"Sis... We're not normal kids in the first place, don't you think?" Yuki said, leaning over his sister to read the list. "Well, I was just thinking that Mom wanted a normal kid, y'know" She _was_human, Yuki." Tsuki reasoned. "I know, but... They're our parents, right? They should have planned for this a long time ago and stuff..." Tsuki hit Yuki on his head. "No! Tomorrow, we're all going to the circus! Uncle Sasori, too!" she declared, fist clenching in determination. Yuki just sighed and agreed, unable to defy his sister.

The next day unfolded as planned.

"A circus?" Hinata echoed Tsuki, puzzled. She looked at Deidara. "Are those still around nowadays?" He inquired. Tsuki, upon hearing this, carried a look of absolute dread. Yuki sighed, secretly glad. "B-But... It was on the list..." Tsuki mumbled to herself, self-consciously adjusting the ribbon in her hair. "List?" Hinata asked. "Nothing..." Tsuki sulked, turning away.

"Well, we could always try the zoo." Hinata offerred to cheer her up. Tsuki's head sprang up. "Zoo?" She recalled the word as number 5 on the List. "I mean, circuses may not be around anymore, but if its animals you want to see, the zoo is a good place." Hinata explained, smiling with her daughter. Secretly, she was excited to go as well.

Tsuki hopped out of her chair, bringing Yuki as well. "Okay! The Zoo! Yuki, pack the camera! Let's GOO!" She ran up the stairs at an alarming speed, rustling noises coming from the upstairs bedroom. "My goodness..." Hinata laughed. Deidara smiled. "I guess we'd better pack." He stood up and walked to the computer to look up the nearby zoo.

-:-

Next chapter's new exciting adventure: The Zoo.

...WOO HOO.

...I'm sorry. ._.

[By the way, 'Punctual' Isn't over yet ;) ]


	23. The Zoo

ZOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

-:-

"Look! A Lion!" Tsuki squealed, running up to the cage excitedly. Yuki trailed behind her. Sasori, who was equally excited, was there before Tsuki was, taking a million pictures a second. He could make a flip book if that was his aim. Hinata and Deidara sat at the nearby bench. It wasn't healthy for Hinata to suddenly be around so many humans, especially with her new found lust for blood.

"How are you?" Deidara asked, an arm around her shoulders. "I'll be fine. I think I have enough self control to behave." Hinata answered, leaning her head on his shoulder. "We can leave, you know. The kids are fine with Sasori. Don't strain yourself." he said, worried. She laughed. "I'm fine, really. Let's go follow them before we lose them in the crowd." She stood up and froze, standing stiff. Deidara jumped up beside her and restrained her arms. She regained focus and let out a deep sigh. "S-Sorry. Let's go." She smiled reassuringly at him. He took her hand and gripped it tightly.

Sasori got the twins excited over almost everything at the zoo. Including the employees who hated their jobs enough to dress up in zebra costumes and hand out balloons (that, since the economy imploded, cost fifty cents each). Of course, the three got a balloon, Sasori a Lion, Tsuki an Elephant, and Yuki a Penguin. They also bought drinks in similar themed cups that were (thankfully) not flavored the same. They took a break in the large cat section, sitting at a bench in front of the Lion's den. Sasori was having a glaring contest with Leo the Lion.

_"Look at those children..."_

_"My goodness, they're pale. Are they sick?"_

_"They're a bit old to like balloons and cups, don't you think?"_

_"That man they're with is a vampire. Do you think...?"_

_"No, that's never been done before. It can't possibly be..."_

_"Fangs! They have fangs!"_

The twins were oblivious to the public's verbal pondering of their features. Sasori, however, heard every word, and was beginning to grow concerned.

_"Someone call the VRC (Vampire Research Corps)! This is huge!"_

It wasn't until a nearby news reporter flashed a picture in their direction that Sasori jumped to his feet, his drink spilling to the floor. "Yuki! Tsuki! We've gotta go!" He said, taking their hands and running in the other way. There were a few people chasing them, a couple being reporters and the rest bystanders that wanted to trail them while the VRC arrived. Sasori took as many sharp turns as he could, also keeping an eye out for Deidara and Hinata.

"Uncle Sasori! What happened? Where are we going?" Tsuki asked, almost panicking. Sasori made sure the coast was clear before shoving the twins and himself into an assistance closet to hide. He hushed them long enough to hear the crowd run past them. When it was completely silent he let out a sigh. "Uncle Sasori? Why were we running? What did those people want?" Tsuki asked, gripping Sasori's shirt with fear. He patted her head reassuringly. "You know how your parents and I always call you special?" He asked, placing a hand on Yuki's shoulder. They were growing taller again. The twins nodded. "Well, we're not the only ones who think so."

The closet, luckily, wasn't as cramped as he anticipated. It was a decent size room that was refrigerated for the animal's food. It smelled of raw meat and some kind of fertilizer. Sasori explained to them that they were the first ever vampire-human children to be born, and that no one has ever heard of their kind. The VRC was in charge of researching Vampires and their past, present, and future. "If they got their hands on you, they'd test your blood, DNA, hair, growth, everything. It's terrible. They'd strip you down to the bone." he said. Tsuki hugged her Elephant balloon. She happened to squeeze too hard, and as a result the balloon popped loudly, catching the attention of those outside.

_"Hey! I heard something!"_

_"In here!"_

The closet door slammed open, and fools rushed in.

-:-

"Are you saying that you were once human?"

"A woman turned into a vampire. My! We're making so many discoveries today!"

"I'm receiving word that they've found the vampire twins."

_No!_

Deidara and Hinata knew immediately what was happening. Their family was in danger. Hinata, hoping to pose as a distraction, revealed that she was the first woman to be turned into a vampire successfully to buy Sasori and her children some time to run. Along with the stress, she had a nice helping of thirst for blood. The people surrounding her were driving her crazy with their pulses. Deidara gripped her arms tightly, praying that the twins made it.

"Ah, I see." One of the scientists grinned. "The vampire twins are being led here as we speak. What a momentous day this is." He crudely grabbed Hinata by the arm and forced her to walk towards the VRC van. Deidara shoved him aside, walking Hinata himself to the van. He glared at the scientist, who stared snottily back. "Dirty creature." he spat.

"Mom! Dad!" Deidara and Hinata swiftly turned to find Yuki and Tsuki handcuffed and walking towards them. Sasori was nowhere to be seen. Hinata ran to them and pulled them in her arms. "Did they hurt you? Are you okay? I wish I could tell you everything's okay, but I'm not sure." She spoke quickly, examining her children head to toe.

"Mother." Tsuki said cautiously.

"It's okay, dear," she said in spite of her previous comment. "They're just going to ask us some questions..."

She didn't see the man with a syringe behind her.

"Mother!" Yuki cried.

Hinata turned around only to have the syringe thrust into her arm, making her fall unconscious.

-:-

_"No! Stop that! Don't touch her!"_

_"Let her go right now!"_

_"Mother!"_

_"Hinata!" _

Hinata blinked her eyes open. _Sasori? _"What do you think you're doing!? She can feel that, you know!" Her eyes glanced to the mirrored window. Her family was on the other side of that wall. The twins were still cuffed. _Tsuki? Yuki? _"Let our Mother go, you jerks!"

"Mrs. Hyuga, I'm glad you're awake now. Don't worry, we're running some tests. You are the first woman-turned-vampire, correct?" She didn't answer. Instead, she looked around for her husband, Deidara. She heard him pounding on the air-sealed door to her left. "Hinata! Wake up! They're about to cut you open!" That woke her up. They didn't tie her up, but her body felt so numb she couldn't move.

"Mrs. Hyuga, I assure you that what we are doing is for a great cause. There is no guarantee for your perfect health, but please-" There was a loud crashing noise. The wall that separated this room from her family crumbled to pieces.

"Yuki! What are you..." Tsuki watched as her brother tore through the equipment and the few scientist on the side. He reached the scientist that was beside Hinata and gripped his throat, holding him up high. Hinata saw that his eyes had turned completely red. His fangs grew longer, ready to pierce through anything. "Yuki..." She didn't like him like this. Yuki, quiet, sensible, Yuki, had the look and intent of a killer. Deidara, who had pushed through the door was at her side, holding her hand.

"**Let my family go. NOW.**" He growled with a voice that struck fear into the devil himself. The scientist, struggling for air, only choked on his words. Yuki squeezed harder on his neck. But before he could kill him, Hinata fought hard to get her strength back and jumped over to calm her child. She ran over and wrapped her arms around Yuki, making him drop the scientist to the ground. "Yuki." She said softly, hugging her son tighter. "My little Yuki. Please." she whispered. She so felt like crying, but the tears wouldn't come.

Tsuki and Sasori ran up to them, watching as Yuki cried the tears his mother wished she could shed for him.

-:-

Yuki stayed silent for a long time after that. None but Tsuki could actually talk to him, and all he really said was "How many did I kill?" or "I'm sorry." and other depressing things like that.

Hinata began to grow very concerned, along with Deidara and Sasori.

"Mother..." Tsuki begain. "Since we're half vampire, does that make us immortal like you guys?" she asked as she poked her food around the plate. Deidara shrugged when Hinata looked at him. "We don't know. But don't try anything, okay? We don't want to lose any of you." She nodded, not telling her parents about Yuki's talk about 'ridding the world of himself'. She quickly finished her dinner and hopped up to their room.

Hinata leaned on Deidara, sighing. "I worry for Yuki. So much." he kissed her head and wrapped his arm around her. "I know." He said softly, his lips pressing against her temple. "I mean, what if he tries to..." She begain to sob. Deidara pulled her into a hug, hushing her comfortingly. "It'll be alright. We haven't even taught them about that, so I'm sure-"

Tsuki bounded down the stairs, tears streaming from her eyes and her whole body shaking. Deidara stood up to meet her at the door. "Tsuki? What happened!?" She shook her head. "Y-Yuki..." Deidara's eyes widened. He leaned Tsuki towards Hinata and carefully walked upstairs.

They heard a yell. It was more like a cry of pain, surprise, the kind you'd hear if someone were to be devastated beyond belief. The kind you'd hear if someone had died.

-:-

WORST ZOO TRIP EVER.

._.


	24. Final: A Happy Ending

The end is near!

-:-

Deidara stared at the ceiling, dread and panic all over his features. His eyes wide, mouth agape, his whole body shaking. His son was hanging from the ceiling, held up with a wire rope tied to a pipe overhead. Tsuki was at the door of the room, Hinata slowly making her way up the stairs. When Tsuki got another glance at Yuki, she winced in pain. Deidara backed away slowly, closing the door behind them. "Don't let your mother see. Wait until I get him down." he said, his voice cracking. Tsuki nodded, walking to her mother and stopping her. She began to cry. They hugged.

When Deidara opened the door again, Hinata caught a glimpse of her son. She screamed, and Tsuki had to hug her tightly to keep her upright.

_Oh, Yuki._ Deidara thought. _Where was your family when you needed us?_

-:-

"I killed so many people. The scientists... They didn't deserve to die. They were just doing their job."

Yuki was lying on his bed, his arm over his face. He had run out of tears to shed. Tsuki was at the door. "It's okay. Mother was in trouble. You did what you had to do." She consoled. "I'm a monster." He turned his back to her. Tsuki walked up to him and placed a hand on his back. "No, Yuki." she bit her lip. As his twin, she felt the pain he was dealing with. He was hurting himself inside, guilty for what he had done back at the VRC lab. 27 scientists had died that day. Every second, Tsuki observed, he was reliving the deaths of those 27. He stopped just before Hinata intervened. He didn't allow himself the comfort of his family. He just kept reliving death after death after death...

Every death he relived killed him inside.

"Tsuki." he said, his voice hoarse. "Could you get me... a glass of blood? I'm thirsty."

Tsuki was hesitant. She felt disturbing waves from him. She felt that this was their last moment together. _That's silly,_ she thought. _He's still here and he's going to be here when I come back with his drink._Still, she took Yuki's hand and squeezed it tightly. "Okay. I love you, Yuki." She whispered in a sisterly way. His hand was limp in hers. She slipped her hand away and left the room.

--

She ran.

As fast as she could.

To deliver the news

of her brother's suicide.

--

The funeral service was held in a small chapel. No one else attended except for Sasori and, of course, the family.

The priest didn't know the first thing about Yuki, they all thought. He had no right to say the things he was and what he could have been.

He had no right. He had no right.

Tsuki's fist clenched so hard it almost bled. Hinata wrapped her handkerchief around her hand, holding it in her hand. Tsuki looked at her mother. Hinata gave her a sad look. "I'm sorry." She whispered.

The burial wasn't much easier. It was the last time they were going to see him. Hinata began crying again, and so did Tsuki. Hinata held on to Deidara, Tsuki hugged Sasori.

The casket was lowered, and as the four left, it began to rain.

-:-

_Where am I?_

_It's cold. _

_And wet. _

_And dark. _

_What happened?_

It was cramped inside that casket. It was hard to move around. It was uncomfortable.

Yuki stopped struggling against the walls of his coffin. He relaxed as much as he could (as much as one could being stuffed in a coffin) and thought rationally for a few minutes.

_What did I do to end up here?_

He remembered wanting blood. He never got it, but before Tsuki could return with it, he...

He hung himself.

Suicide.

_Strange. _he thought. _I don't... __feel__ suicidal anymore. Did I die?_ he lifted his head up, only to be smacked back down by the roof of the coffin. "Shit!" he cursed, his hand reaching up to feel his head. He succeeded only in bruising his thumb. "Fuck!" He decided to abandon moving and just taking the pain like a man.

Giving himself time, he thought more of what he had done to land himself here. He was depressed, he remembered. He had a wire rope ready in the closet, he recalled. He recollected his thoughts at the time. _'It would really suck if I couldn't die.'_

Now he was scaring himself. His thoughts were so bleak. So depressing. So... So...

He had to get out. He wriggled his arms up to pound on the roof. It wouldn't budge. He pounded again, harder. He began to panic. _Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, LET ME OUT!!_ He pounded frantically, a trail of blood leaking from a bruise and staining his white dress shirt.

_Come on, _he thought. _I'm half vampire, right? My dad's the strongest guy I know. I HAVE to at least gotten his strength in the gene line. _He stopped pounding for a minute to recollect his strength. Then, in one focused punch, he broke a hole through the casket. His fist was caked with blood and dirt. He let his vampire self take over, punching more of the casket open and digging through the dirt faster than a worm with shovels for hands. When he got out, it was raining. He pulled himself out of the hole he made in his grave.

"Holy Shit."

Yuki turned to his right, where a grave digger was having his lunch under a tree. "Holy SHIT. A zombie." It was odd that he wasn't scared. At least, he didn't look scared. He continued to pull himself out, dusting himself off. "Uh... Hello." he greeted the gravedigger. The digger nodded to him in response. "Um... Where am I?" He walked toward the man and sat across from him. "The cemetery. I'm afraid most of your friends here are six feet under." the digger offered him a bite out of his sandwich. "Oh, no. I'm fine."

"Okay, but don't eat my brains when you get hungry."

-:-

The grave digger was kind enough to appoint him to the right way home. It was late at night when he got to the house. The front door was locked, so he went around to the window to their room. He took a pebble and threw it at the window, but, still bearing some of his vampiric strength, the pebble broke a clean hole through the glass and hit someone on the head.

"Ow!"

Tsuki.

She stomped to the window, observing the damage on the window, then opening it and looking out. She looked around the yard until her eyes finally settled on her twin.

"Yuki?" she said, breathless. Yuki waved. Tsuki left the window immediately and ran through the front door. "I swear to god, if you're some asshole pretending to be my brother, I'll-" Yuki met her mid-way and hugged her. She instantly began crying, holding Yuki as tightly as she could. "What the hell are you doing here!?" she sobbed, hitting him. Yuki placed a hand on her shoulder. "I don't know." he replied, unsure on how to respond.

"Tsuki? What happened-" Hinata walked around the house. She saw the twins hugging each other. Almost immediately she fainted, the twins quickly running to her side. "Mother!" "Mom!" they yelled. "Yuki! Get Father, hurry!" Tsuki shouted, making Yuki jump to his feet. "But.. He'll... He'll be-"

"Hurry!" Yuki bolted for the house.

"Dad! Dad, Mom fainted outside!" Yuki called, running through the house in search of his father. Deidara stepped out of his room, a book in his hand and reading glasses over his eyes. "Yuki? What are you-" Yuki shook his head. "I'll explain later! Mom's in trouble, go, go!" He ran back down the stairs, Deidara already beside him walking. "What happened?" he asked. "Mom saw me and fainted. I don't think that's normal, so she might be in trouble!" Yuki explained quickly. Deidara nodded, running ahead of him and disappearing in a second.

"Tsuki, is she okay?" Deidara crouched down and scooped Hinata into his arms. "Hinata, Hinata, wake up." he gently shook her, and she began to wake. "Deidara?" She whispered. "I saw Yuki..." she said softly, looking around for him. "I know. I did too." this made her wake up entirely. "He's alive? Where?" Tsuki pushed Yuki up to Hinata's side. Hinata stared at him, slowly bringing her hands up to his face. "My baby boy..." she felt his cheeks, his hair, his neck and shoulders, and Yuki began to cry.

"I-I'm sorry, Mom, Dad, Tsuki. I didn't... I mean, I thought..." he couldn't find the words. Hinata smiled at him and wiped his tears away. "It's okay, darling. We love you." He wrapped his arms around her, and they formed a group hug out in the yard.

_We love you._

-:-

"Happy First Birthday!"

Sasori marched into the kitchen with a cake. The twins were celebrating their first birthday. "Ah, one year and you've already been to the zoo, kidnapped, and committed suicide. Congratulations!" there was laughter and giggling. "And not to mention you two are already the size of two ripe college kids. Jeez." Sasori rolled his eyes.

The twins blew out the candles, and cut out two small slices to eat.

"What are you two doing?" Deidara asked, taking the knife and cutting a bigger piece. "Well, this cake's for everyone, right?" Tsuki looked at her piece of cake. Yuki nodded. The three laughed. "You two are silly. We're vampires. Our stomachs don't exactly work, so we don't eat. We don't feel hungry anyway." Deidara explained. The twins stared at them for a while.

"Well... I _was_hungry about a year ago..." Hinata said, reaching for a slice of cake. She ate it and grinned. "My taste buds still work!" She said excitedly, eating the cake like she hadn't eaten in months. (She hadn't). It was the twins' turn to laugh.

The cake was finished before dinner.

--

_In conclusion, _the author wrote. _The family of vampires lived on forever and ever. _

"..."

Backspace, backspace, backspace.

"ARGH!!! NOT AGAIN!!!" She screamed, throwing her hands up frantically. "THIS STORY WAS SO EPIC, TOO!" TheWindAlchemist, fanfiction author, was once again having trouble ending her story. She pulled out her imaginary archive of stories (which wasn't exactly impressive) and looked over the endings. She had five one-shots, one trilogy, three spin offs of said trilogy, a DeiHina story with one sequel, a SasoHina story that was _supposed _to be a DeiHina but ended tragically the way it did, a GaaHina story that shouldn't have been ended the way it was, two stand alone DeiHina stories, a sort-of-on-hiatus-sort-of-given-up-on-but-not-totally-abandoning-the-story PeinKonan Fairy Tale, and plus, she was juggling two stories with two entirely different plots as we speak.

And, as we speak, TheWindAlchemist is finding it more and more inappropriate to end a Vampire Epic with her own description of her ramblings. So, to gain inspiration, she thought about random words. She looked at random things, and she even searched up random on google. [Random [dot] org is a real website]

Alas, she found no sufficient way to end her story.

All except for this.

-:-

To bring ourselves back to the beginning of the story, which was about a young girl whose family is killed by vampires. The very vampire who tried to kill her fell in love with her, and she in love with him. The vampire's friends all took a liking to her, except for one, who was in love with the vampire as well. The jealous vampire killed her with a broken heart and lived the next century with his sad, depressed, brokenhearted friend. Just when the lovesick vampire was at his lowest, a shining beacon of light shed upon him. A girl who looked exactly like his past lover was standing before him; she was the daughter of his past lover's brother.

Which brings us to the second half of the story, when the jealous vampire also falls in love with the girl. they have a triangle of relationships before the original lovers get married. They have two beautiful children and the woman is turned into a vampire. The first time the family goes out, they are kidnapped and under the captive of vampire researching scientists. The boy twin used his vampire side to rescue his mother and his family from the scientists, killing them. Guilt ridden and sad, he hung himself, only to find out that he couldn't die. The suicide attempt gave him a new look on life. He saw how much he caused his family grief, and continued to live with the family he knew would accept him no matter what.

They are now living happily with each other, living through the good and bad, supporting each other, and loving each other.

Living happily forever after.

-:-

The end is here!

Haha... well... there we go. The end with an epilogue coming up!

Hold the applause, haha. I'd like to thank my manager (me) my consultant (me) and my editor (Microsoft Word). And of course, my fans and reviewers. This truly made my experience in writing this and all of my stories memorable.

(cue sappy music to end speech).


	25. Epilogue

Epilogue...

-:-

It is here, about fifty years later, that we come back to the couple this story was originally made for: Deidara and Hinata. Long ago, they fell in love, long ago, they fell in love again. They have a family with twins and an Uncle, living comfortably in their home. The VRC left them alone, but Deidara made sure to document any discoveries made about the half vampire half human children. The main ones were that they grow faster after the first month after birth, their minds mature with their bodies, they can split their strength between human and vampire, they cannot age, and they cannot die. He was very pleased with the last fact, because then he'd have, not only Hinata -the love of his life-, but his two beautiful children to boot.

Despite all of this, Hinata felt the need to ask him this question: "Deidara, are you happy?"

The twins were out, hanging out with their friends from work. Sasori was out as well, doing who-knows-what, who-knows-where, with who-knows-who. Deidara and Hinata were left alone in the house, and of course they were spending it with each other.

"Of course I'm happy, Hinata. I have you, first of all. My children, and my best friend doesn't want to fuck me every other minute." he laughed. Hinata smiled and ran her hand idly over his chest. "I know, I'm happy with all these things too. But... is that really all you need? I mean, do you need anything from _any_of those things? Me included?" she asked, looking up at him. She had a glint in her eye that he recognized, but not enough to name it. "Hm... I want my children to do the absolute best they can in what they do. I want Sasori to be happy in every way he can. I want you to..." he paused, still puzzled about her look. "Go on." She said, now in a voice she didn't often use.

"Is there something wrong, Hinata?" He asked. She shook her head. "I was just thinking..." She went up to stand on her knees, then suddenly straddled Deidara, which would be a surprising act even if she _weren't_a vampire. He rested his hands on her waist to keep her from falling. Even if she was virtually unbreakable, he kept the habit of worrying over her human self. She didn't seem to mind this time. "Do you _want_ anything from me?" she brought her face close to his. He almost turned pink. They hadn't been this frisky in fifty years. "Well..." He was trying to remember what turned her on, but he didn't seem to be having a hard time with that - She looked pretty horny right now.

His eyes rolled over her body. He almost forgot how curvy she was. "Hinata..." He leaned a little bit to whisper in her ear. "Are you suggesting we..." he finished his sentence with a kiss to her ear lobe. She smiled a little. "I'm wondering if vampire women can still feel... _pleasure_." she kissed his cheek. Deidara chuckled, bringing her up in his arms. "You know, I'm beginning to wonder the same thing. We should test this out, yes?" he mumbled against her neck. He walked into the bedroom, closing the door and locking it.

-:-

"Oh, Dei_dara!_"

Tsuki and Yuki were not pleased.

"Hinata! Oh God!"

Not one bit.

"Yes, YES!"

Yuki adjusted his glasses, turning a flushed red.

_Just how long have they been..._ they both thought.

"Faster, YES!" -heart-

It wasn't long until Sasori arrived home. He found the twins still standing, frozen at the door. "Yuki? Tsuki? What's up?" He paused. Then he heard it.

"-groan- Deidara... Yes!"

"Holy shit! Hinata... Hinata!"

Sasori burst out laughing. Yuki and Tsuki were standing there, turning only slightly to look at their Uncle. "Uncle Sasori...?" they called in a ghastly tone. They were clearly traumatized. Never before had they heard..._this. _

Sasori, who seemed to know what to do all the time, walked up to the bedroom door and casually knocked on the door. "Me next, me next!" he purred, laughing. The moaning came to an abrupt stop. Then a thumping. A crash. "Fuck!" Deidara cursed a little too loudly. Sasori opened the door, not bothering to check if they had their clothes on. "S-Sasori!" Hinata squeaked, covering herself with the blanket. Deidara was rubbing a sore spot on his head from where he hit the lamp table. The lamp was shattered on the floor.

"Dammit, Sasori!" he yelled. "What? You're scaring your children." Sasori grinned at how perfectly timed everything was. Tsuki and Yuki were slowly -but surely- making their way to the bedroom to talk to their parents. "T-Twins!" Hinata yelped, hiding herself under her blanket.

"M-Mom... Dad... What were you..." Yuki started, then covered his mouth and looked away, blushing. He had to admit, his mother was sexy.

Sasori felt his inner gay coming back to him after all this time. "Why don't we play with that woodchuck of yours sometime, Yuki?" he flirted, winking. He stared at him, horrified. "Hey, cut that out!" Deidara called, pulling his pants on and walking towards them. "Hinata, say something to him!" Deidara huffed. She was still too embarrassed to emerge from under the covers. Deidara rolled his eyes. "I'd rather you flirt with me than my own son." he told Sasori, who grinned.

After a few minutes, the family was in the living room. The twins felt a sense of deja vu, sitting across from their parents, about to have a short orientation on sexual intercourse.

"Now, kids, we've been through this before." Deidara said in the most fatherly tone he could muster. "What me and Mommy were doing was a good thing."

"Sure sounded like it." Sasori chimed, chuckling. Deidara shook off the growing pink tint to his cheeks. "We were, as you heard, having sex." he admitted, making Hinata fidget uncomfortably. "You've been in this world for fifty-one years now, you should have expected this of us sooner or later." Hinata managed to add to this. "W-We didn't h-hear you two c-come in." she said softly.

"Besides, it was all your mother." Deidara said, laughing. Hinata, who was able to bring out her inner human, blushed.

Tsuki and Yuki just stared. For the longest time, with their mouths agape. Sasori grinned. "Well, wasn't today fun?" he got up and left them to go to his room.

"What was that!?" Tsuki shrieked. "It sounded like you were- Like you were killing each other! Only you liked it!" Yuki agreed, equally freaked out.

"We're sorry! I didn't know we were at it for so long!" Hinata apologized hastily.

"'At it'!? Oh my god!" Tsuki sighed and flumped back in her seat. Yuki did the same. "You two were more than 'at it'!"

Deidara couldn't help but feel proud.

Which was just a little... odd.

-:-

A few days later, everyone was able to put the whole thing behind them.

They were able to get back to their normal lives, and to both Deidara and Yuki's relief, they didn't see Sasori's inner gay for a very long time.

Hinata tried to keep her sexual urges to herself, and she succeeded.

Tsuki, who enrolled at the local college met the perfect vampire for her. They were dating in less than a second, much to the annoyance of Deidara. But when they actually met...

"...Hidan?"

"...Deidara?"

It was an awkward moment indeed.

Yuki found a girl for himself at his job. Her name was Claire (yes, THAT Claire), and she held just the right amount of mischief that yuki simply adored. When their parents met...

"P-Pein-sama!?"

"Deidara!?"

Yet another awkward moment.

Alas, among all this chaos, this story must come to an official close via epilogue. It is quite clear that a happily ever after is in order, along with a little extra.

**The End**

-:-

(Claire, as in Pein and Konan's daughter in the Akatsuki Trilogy)

Well, that's that.

Thank you for all your reviews and thanks for reading!

Bye!


End file.
